Sinistre

Part of speech: adjective, noun

Definitions

1. Looking dark, threatening, or suggesting evil intent ; an archaic term meaning positioned on or relating to the left side
2. Suggesting menace or wickedness in appearance or nature ; an obsolete usage referring to the left-hand side of something
3. Having a threatening, ominous air about it ; a rare old-fashioned word for something located on the left

Etymology: The Latin "sinister" meant "left" in the literal sense of the left hand, and it carried no hint of menace. The Romans regarded the left side as inauspicious, and augurs watching birds in flight counted a sign from the left as unlucky. That omen-reading gave the word its darker tone, so the sense of "ominous" grew out of a simple directional term. The word reached English in the Middle Ages through Old French "senestre" and "sinistre," which meant "left," and the English form "sinistre" appeared with the sense "unlucky." It was an early borrowing that carried its ominous sense with it, and "sinister" later took over as the standard spelling. Only the older form survives today as an obsolete variant.