presentiment: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
LowFormal, Literary
Quick answer
What does “presentiment” mean?
A vague or intuitive feeling that something is about to happen, especially something ominous or unpleasant.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
A vague or intuitive feeling that something is about to happen, especially something ominous or unpleasant.
A foreboding; a premonition; a sense of apprehension about a future event, often without a rational basis.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant difference in meaning or usage. Slightly more common in British literary contexts.
Connotations
Equally literary and formal in both varieties.
Frequency
Very low frequency in everyday speech in both regions; primarily found in written texts.
Grammar
How to Use “presentiment” in a Sentence
to have a presentiment of [something]a presentiment that [clause]Vocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “presentiment” in a Sentence
verb
British English
- The word 'presentiment' is not a verb and has no verb form.
American English
- The word 'presentiment' is not a verb and has no verb form.
adverb
British English
- There is no standard adverb form.
American English
- There is no standard adverb form.
adjective
British English
- The related adjective is 'presentimental', though it is exceedingly rare and archaic.
American English
- The related adjective is 'presentimental', though it is exceedingly rare and archaic.
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Virtually never used.
Academic
Rare, but possible in literary analysis, psychology, or philosophical texts discussing intuition.
Everyday
Extremely rare; considered a 'fancy' word.
Technical
Not used in technical fields.
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “presentiment”
Strong
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “presentiment”
- Using it for a positive feeling (incorrect).
- Confusing it with 'presentation'.
- Misspelling as 'presentment' (a different, legal term).
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No, by definition, a presentiment is a feeling that something bad or ominous is going to happen.
No, it is a low-frequency, formal word primarily found in literary contexts.
A premonition can be positive or negative, while a presentiment is exclusively negative or ominous. They are otherwise very close synonyms.
Etymologically, yes. It comes from Latin 'praesentire' (to feel beforehand), where 'prae-' means 'before' and 'sentire' means 'to feel'. It is not related to the modern word 'present' meaning a gift.
A vague or intuitive feeling that something is about to happen, especially something ominous or unpleasant.
Presentiment is usually formal, literary in register.
Presentiment: in British English it is pronounced /prɪˈzɛntɪm(ə)nt/, and in American English it is pronounced /prɪˈzɛn(t)əmənt/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “A shadow of presentiment fell over him.”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think: 'A SENTIMENT you feel BEFORE (PRE-) something happens.' It's a PRE-feeling.
Conceptual Metaphor
THE FUTURE IS A LANDSCAPE APPROACHING (one can feel its shadow or hear its distant rumble before it arrives).
Practice
Quiz
Which sentence uses 'presentiment' correctly?