Emily Dickinson Lexicon

portentous, adj. [L. portentōsus < portentum, sign, omen, monster, marvelous tale.] (webplay: ignorance).

1. Foreboding; prophetic; [fig.] secretive; implied; implicit; unspoken.
2. Inevitable; impending; imminent; destined; pre-determined.
3. Enormous; immense; monstrous; awful.
4. Strange; unusual; peculiar; queer; curious; remarkable; extraordinary; amazing; shocking; appalling; dismaying; disconcerting.

portentous (-ly), adv. [see portentous.]

1. Ominously; disturbingly; frighteningly; dreadfully; chillingly; in a terrifying manner.
2. Suspensefully; in a manner causing pleasurable tension; in a way calculated to arouse intense curiosity.

porter, n. [ME and AFr < OFr < late L. portārius, door-keeper < porta, door.] (webplay: bear, heavy).

1. Gatekeeper; doorman; guard; servant employed to watch over an entrance.
2. Person who is paid to carry burdens; one who conveys heavy luggage; [fig.] sufferer; person experiencing difficult trials.

portico, n. [It. < L. porticus, porch, colonnade < porta, door, gate.] (webplay: bar, door, easily, hand, order).

Porch; patio; sheltered doorway; covered entrance.

portion, n. [ME < OFr < L. portiō-nem, share, part, proportion.] (webplay: assigned, child, fortune, heard, ways).

1. Part; piece; measure; amount; quantity; magnitude.
2. Allotment; allocation; rightful share; deserved apportionment.
3. Riches; wealth; fortune; property; possessions; material belongings.
4. [Fig.] lot; destiny; fate.
5. [Fig.] life; mortality; span of years; opportunity; chance.
6. [Fig.] gift; endowment; bestowal.

portly, adj. [Fr. port, bearing, manners, gait < L. portāre, bear, carry.] (webplay: business, little, shore).

Plump; fat; corpulent; full-figured; well-fed.

portrait (-s), n. [Fr. portraire, portray < L. protractus, plan, image, portrait.] (webplay: face).

1. Picture; painting; sketch; likeness; drawn representation.
2. Face; image.

portray, v. [ME < OFr pourtraire, portray, fashion, represent < L. protrahěre, draw forth, reveal, extend, prolong.] (webplay: horseback).

Describe; express; recount; relate; report; elaborate on; give an account of; [fig.] explain; attest; certify; account for; prove.

positive, adj. [ME positif < Fr. < L. pōněre, place, put, lay down.] (webplay: admitting, different, know, species, strong).

1. Believable; plausible; real; genuine; authentic; actual; perceptible; tangible; audible.
2. Explicit; expressed; stated; declared; natural; inherent; fundamental; primary; principal.
3. Sure; certain; confident; convinced; fully assured.

positive, n. [see positive, adj.]

Prescription; injunction; decree; edict; law; certainty; surety; [fig.] meaning; message; indication; connotation; interpretation.