augur

1
[ aw-ger ]
See synonyms for: augurauguredauguring on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. in ancient Rome, any of a group of officials charged with observing and interpreting omens for guidance in public affairs.

  2. Sometimes au·gur·er [aw-ger-er] /ˈɔ gər ər/ . someone who foretells the future and interprets omens; soothsayer or prophet.

verb (used with object)
  1. to serve as an omen or promise of; foreshadow; betoken: Mounting sales augur a profitable year.

  2. to predict or foretell, as from signs or omens: He made careful calculations and augured happy and sure success for the new enterprise. The curator augurs from ticket sales that this exhibition will be the dawning of the artist’s career.

verb (used without object)
  1. to be a sign of a certain kind of outcome; bode (well, ill, etc.): The movement of troops augurs ill for the peace of the area.

  2. to make a prediction or guess based on signs or omens: Despite receiving him coolly, she had not refused his gift, and he augured favorably from that.

Origin of augur

1
First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin augur, variant of auger “diviner, soothsayer,” derivative of augēre “to increase,” with the original implication of “to prosper”; cf. augment, august

Words that may be confused with augur

Words Nearby augur

Other definitions for augur (2 of 2)

augur2
[ aw-ger ]

verb (used without object)
  1. to argue, talk, or converse.

noun
  1. an excessively talkative person.

Origin of augur

2
First recorded in 1920–25; variant of argue; noun perhaps by association with auger

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use augur in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for augur

augur

/ (ˈɔːɡə) /


noun
  1. Also called: auspex (in ancient Rome) a religious official who observed and interpreted omens and signs to help guide the making of public decisions

  2. any prophet or soothsayer

verb
  1. to predict (some future event), as from signs or omens

  2. (tr; may take a clause as object) to be an omen (of); presage

  1. (intr) to foreshadow future events to be as specified; bode: this augurs well for us

Origin of augur

1
C14: from Latin: a diviner, perhaps from augēre to increase

Derived forms of augur

  • augural (ˈɔːɡjʊrəl), adjective
  • augurship, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012