medicine man

noun

1. (among North American Indians and some other aboriginal peoples) a person believed to possess magical or supernatural powers; shaman.
2. a seller of patent medicine, especially before 1900, presenting a medicine show to attract customers.

medicine man

noun

1. (among certain peoples, esp North American Indians) a person believed to have supernatural powers of healing; a magician or sorcerer

Word History and Origins

Origin of medicine man¹

First recorded in 1795–1805

Example Sentences

In the 1600s, they lived in 69 villages, each with a chief, or sachem, and a medicine man.

From Washington Post

Next door, a center built in the late 1990s serves as a repository for artifacts and exhibits, such as photographs of the tribe’s last known medicine man and Richardson’s parents sharing their culture with tourists at Jamestown.

From Washington Post

I thought of the medicine man who gave me my name, and how he taught me about entropy—the way a body holds our origins and stars—and how, after he built our sweat lodge, willow and tie by willow and tie, he ended the day by watching Die Hard.

From Time

Medicine Man is one of the few dispensaries, both medical and recreational, that has its grow house onsite.

From The Daily Beast

Despite being one of the largest dispensaries in Colorado, Medicine Man will soon double in size.

From The Daily Beast

Old Mr. Medicine Man, he stands up in the plain daylight, and he draws his bow and shoots a arrer plum through that boy.

From Project Gutenberg

Boy squirms a heap and Mr. Medicine Man socks another arrer through him, cool as you please—I have seen that done.

From Project Gutenberg

Then the medicine man steps up, cuts off the boy's head with his knife—holds it up plain, so everybody can see it.

From Project Gutenberg

But now the old medicine man takes a blanket and throws it over this dead boy.

From Project Gutenberg

It may be necessary here to remark that the blacks, under no circumstances, kill a medicine-man.

From Project Gutenberg