Hi guys,

Word Of the Week (WOW) is a weekly meme created by Heena Rathore P. (me.)

It’s a fun way to improve one’s vocabulary by learning new words every week.

If you want to participate then simply do a post with your WORD and leave the link to your post as a comment on one of my WOW post.

Here’s this week’s WOW:

Word:

Harbinger

Part Of Speech:

Noun

Derivatives:

• To be a harbinger of – transitive verb

Pronunciation:

• /ˈhɑːbɪn(d)ʒə/
• har-bin-ger
• Audio

Meaning:

• A person or thing that announces or signals the approach of another.
• A forerunner of something.
• Something that shows what is coming.

Synonyms:

Forewarning, presage, announcer, usher, foretoken

Antonyms:

Unanticipated, lack of foreknowledge.

Word Origin:

Middle English: from Old French herbergere, from herbergier ‘provide lodging for’, from herberge ‘lodging’, from Old Saxon heriberga ‘shelter for an army, lodging’ (from heri‘army’ + a Germanic base meaning ‘fortified place’), related to harbour. The term originally denoted a person who provided lodging, later one who went ahead to find lodgings for an army or for a nobleman and his retinue, hence, a herald (mid 16th century).

Usage Note:

None.

Use In Sentences:

• Witch hazels are considered as the harbinger of spring.

  

• Everyone knows the groundhog is the harbinger of a change in seasons.

  

• His arrival was considered to be the harbinger of bad news.