fake psychic
Crystal ball con
A fake psychic is someone who claims supernatural abilities—reading minds, predicting futures, communicating with the dead—while knowing they possess no such powers.
The term is somewhat redundant, since skeptics consider all psychics fake by definition: She lost thousands to a fake psychic who claimed to remove a curse.
The qualifier "fake" typically appears when fraud is being alleged or proven, distinguishing deliberate con artists from those who may genuinely believe in their abilities.
- charlatanFaker claiming false expertise
- mediumMiddle size or state
- spirit mediumOne who contacts deceased
- con artistProfessional fraud perpetrator
- con jobDeceptive scheme for profit
crystal ball · séance · fortune teller · scam · cold reading · hot reading · fraud · tarot · spiritualist · huckster · palm reader · palm reading · gullible · skeptic · debunk · hoax · trickster · paranormal
- deceiversliar, liars, deceiver, fraud, impostor
- swindlerscon artist, swindler, fraudster, scammer, grifter
- religious fraudfalse prophet, false messiah, charlatan, prosperity gospel, televangelist