portent
noun /ˈpɔːtent/
/ˈpɔːrtent/
(literary)- a sign or warning of something that is going to happen in the future, especially when it is something unpleasant
预兆；征兆；先兆；（尤指）恶兆，凶兆 - The event proved to be a portent of the disaster that was to come.
这一事件被证明是即将到来的灾难的预兆。 - We shall try to reach an agreement but the portents are not good.
我们将努力达成协议，但前景不妙。
词源late 16th cent.: from Latin portentum ‘omen, token’, from the verb portendere, based on pro- ‘forth’ + tendere ‘stretch’. - The event proved to be a portent of the disaster that was to come.