2 meanings
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1 —as in:
heralds the coming of...
Definition
a sign that something will happen — especially something important and goodor:
announce or welcome — especially with enthusiasm
- Her appointment would herald a new emphasis on the environment.
herald = provide a sign that something will happen — especially something important and good
or:
announce
or:
announce
Other Uses (with this meaning)
- The personal computer heralded a new age.
- There are few who cannot recall that day and remember the one little incident which heralded the dawn of a new life.Sir Arthur Conan Doyle -- A Study In Scarlet
- School- days were ended, and the mystic function known to the initiated as "graduation" was about to be celebrated; it was even now heralded by the sun dawning in the eastern sky.Kate Douglas Wiggin -- Rebecca Of Sunnybrook Farm
- At least he should come unheralded by us.J.R.R. Tolkien -- The Return of the King
- The sound, not unlike the rat-a-tat-tat of parade drums, heralded Hickock's arrival.Truman Capote -- In Cold Blood
- Had the appearance of the pigeon heralded the changes that took hold of their lives?Nicholas Sparks -- The Choice
- I walked unshadowed; I came unheralded.Virginia Woolf -- The Waves
- The White Dragon approached slowly and cautiously, but no signal heralded their arrival.James A. Owen -- Here, There be Dragons
- Behind and before, sparse auto headlights, belated or heralding dew on the bough of the night.Henry Roth -- Call It Sleep
unheralded = unannounced
(editor's note: The prefix "un-" in unheralded means not and reverses the meaning of heralded. This is the same pattern you see in words like unhappy, unknown, and unlucky.)
(editor's note: The prefix "un-" in unheralded means not and reverses the meaning of heralded. This is the same pattern you see in words like unhappy, unknown, and unlucky.)
2 —as in:
announced by herald & trumpet
Definition
a person who announces important news — especially a king's representative- The king's herald announced it this morning.
herald = a person who announces important news — especially a king's representative
Other Uses (with this meaning)
- the chieftain had a herald who announced his arrival with a trumpet
- Then one advanced singly, and apparently more in the character of a herald than of an assailant.James Fenimore Cooper -- The Prairie
- Then the herald loudly proclaimed, "This is what you are commanded to do, O peoples, nations and men of every language:"Daniel 3:3-4 (NIV)
- And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.2 Timothy 1:11 (NIV)
- Enter a Herald with a proclamation; people following.Shakespeare -- Othello
- 'herald, read the accusation!' said the King.Lewis Carroll -- Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
- "Hark! the Herald Angels Sing" came next, and led into the nativity scene.Ernest J. Gaines -- A Lesson Before Dying
- Then Aragorn set trumpeters at each of the four roads that ran into the ring of trees, and they blew a great fanfare, and the heralds cried aloud...J.R.R. Tolkien -- The Return of the King
- your fame needs no heralds milordRobert A. Heinlein -- Glory Road
herald = announcer of important information
herald = announcing important news
heralds = people who announce important news — especially a king's representatives
heralds = a person who announces important news
Less commonly:
More rarely, herald can also refer to an official whose specialty is heraldry (the study of coats of arms -- symbols once used to signify the right to bear arms).
Historically a herald was a person who made announcements at jousting matches, or (much more rarely) any prestigious assistant in a dignified setting such as a courthouse or royal palace.