Omen

How to spell omen

4 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce omen

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does omen mean?

1. nounA sign or event regarded as foretelling good or bad fortune to come.

Omen in a sentence

• The smooth flight and the clear sky felt like a good omen for the trip.

• Investors treated the sudden drop in sales as a worrying omen for the year ahead.

Where does omen come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word comes directly from the Latin omen, which meant a sign, a foretoken, or a prophetic announcement, especially one read from natural events or the behaviour of birds. The Romans took these signs extremely seriously, and an official augur would interpret whether an omen was favourable or unfavourable before any major public act. The deeper origin of the Latin word is genuinely uncertain, though it may connect to an old root meaning to speak or to utter, since an omen was understood as something that spoke a hidden truth. English borrowed it in the sixteenth century with almost no change to its form or sense. Because it travelled into English as a clean four-letter Latin word, the spelling is simple, and the related adjective ominous keeps the same root visible.

How the word is built

• omen (from Latin omen: a sign or foretoken); a single indivisible root with no prefix or suffix