soothsayers

Predictors of fate

Soothsayers are people who claim to predict the future.

The word combines sooth (an archaic word for truth) with sayer—literally, truth-teller.

Despite this etymology, soothsayer now carries connotations of dubious prophecy rather than reliable truth: The soothsayers warned Caesar to beware the Ides of March.

The term sounds archaic or literary, often used for ancient oracles or fortune-tellers.

ancient

oracle

Authoritative wisdom source

DelphiGreek prophetic sanctuary
priestOne who performs sacraments
priestessFemale religious officiant

temple · Rome · augur · Nostradamus · Tiresias · Cassandra · shaman · druid · sage · elder

divination

prophecy

Foretelling of future events

oracleAuthoritative wisdom source
predictionForecast of coming events
fortune-tellingClaiming to predict futures

augury · omen · vision · revelation · foretelling · prognostication · clairvoyance · foresight · portent · diviner

cultural

medium

Middle size or state

shamanIndigenous spiritual healer
curanderoLatin American folk healer
astrologerZodiac interpreter

geomancer · palmist · tarot · cowrie · bones · runes · tea-leaves

modern

psychic

One claiming supernatural perception

mediumMiddle size or state
channelerOne who transmits spirits
clairvoyantOne who perceives beyond senses

fortuneteller · astrologer · hotline · carnival · fairground · seance · spiritualist · intuitive · consultant · advisor

skepticism

charlatan

Faker claiming false expertise

fraudIntentional criminal trickery
quackFake healer or fowl noise
hoaxDeliberate deception for effect

deception · pseudoscience · superstition · gullibility · trickery · manipulation · con-artist · fake · huckster · skeptic

soothsayers

oracle

prophecy

medium

psychic

charlatan

soothsayers

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