bode

¹

[ bohd ]

verb (used with object)

, bod·ed, bod·ing.

1. to be an omen of; portend:

   The news bodes evil days for him.

2. Archaic. to announce beforehand; predict.

verb (used without object)

, bod·ed, bod·ing.

1. to portend:

   The news bodes well for him.

bode

²

[ bohd ]

verb

1. a simple past tense of bide.

bode

¹

/ bəʊd /

verb

1. to be an omen of (good or ill, esp of ill); portend; presage
2. archaic.
   tr to predict; foretell

bode

²

/ bəʊd /

verb

1. See bide
   the past tense of bide

Derived Forms

• ˈboding, nounadjective
• ˈbodement, noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of bode¹

before 1000; Middle English boden, Old English bodian to announce, foretell (cognate with Old Norse botha ), derivative of boda messenger, cognate with German Bote, Old Norse bothi

Word History and Origins

Origin of bode¹

Old English bodian ; related to Old Norse botha to proclaim, Old Frisian bodia to invite

Example Sentences

I don’t know about you, but it strikes me that if the price of land for a new experimental city is too expensive for Alphabet, that doesn’t bode well for the affordability of cities in general.

From Freakonomics

That bodes well for the Northern Hemisphere if people continue taking those precautions.

From MIT Technology Review

Such regression doesn’t bode well late in the playoffs, when it’s important to have shot-makers with confidence to score over good defenses.

From FiveThirtyEight

That likely bodes well for its US release, despite the still-dire nature of the Covid-19 infection rate in many states.

From Vox

“The fact that this drug has already been developed and shown to be successful in treating feline infectious peritonitis, it really bodes well,” Lemieux says.

From Science News

Still, the lack of communication with the tribes does not bode well for the future relationships.

From The Daily Beast

Such thinking does not bode well for women, who are primary targets in honor-seeking attacks.

From The Daily Beast

Everyone except for Bode Miller, who defended Cooper on Twitter and in a CNN interview, saying, "I felt like it was me, not her."

From The Daily Beast

The skier most connected to that stratospheric rise is Bode Miller.

From The Daily Beast

Going into the 2006 Turin Olympics, Bode became the touted star of the Games.

From The Daily Beast

Suspicion filled the air, and the sudden appearance of innumerable friars seemed to bode some great foreign movement.

From Project Gutenberg

The arrival of the two Germans, Bode and Busche, gave the finishing touch to the conspiracy.

From Project Gutenberg

Quat oget nu at for-bode o wold, GE 324, what now was the import of that prohibition; And vndernam him at it agte awold, id.

From Project Gutenberg

I shall begin to grumble about them myself soon, for I'm aware of warnings in my spine which bode no good.

From Project Gutenberg

"That could bode no good to the place he honoured with his residence," said Gosling.

From Project Gutenberg