bad omen
Warning of misfortune
A bad omen is a sign believed to predict misfortune or disaster.
Black cats crossing your path, breaking mirrors, and ravens gathering have all served as bad omens in various cultures.
The phrase often appears with ironic distance: I took the flat tire as a bad omen for the whole trip.
Unlike superstitions, which prescribe behavior, omens simply warn.
- black catDark-coated feline
- broken mirrorDamaged reflective pane
- spilled saltSeasoning tipped over accidentally
- superstitionBaseless belief in omens
- crowLarge black corvid
ill-fated · curse · eclipse · blood moon · red sky · death knell · hex · comet · ill wind · raven · black dog · albatross · unlucky · prophecy · doomed · dread · jinx · number four
- omensportents, signs, augury, harbinger, harbingers
- superstitionblack cat, broken mirror, Friday the 13th, walking under ladder, evil eye
- superstitionssuperstition, superstitions, hexes, black cats, broken mirror
- warningswarning, alert, caution, danger, warning sign
- Cat Lorecat goddess, familiar, witch's cat, familiars, black cat
- gut feelingsgut feeling, gut instinct, gut reaction, hunch, instinct
bad omengood omen
Favorable sign of future
good sign · lucky charm · blessing · auspice · four-leaf clover
bad omenlucky charm
Object thought to bring fortune
good luck charm · talisman · amulet · rabbit's foot · four-leaf clover
bad, badly, omen, foreboding, badness, portent, baddy, omens, baddest