Synonyms

fortune-teller

American

[fawr-chuhn-tel-er] / ˈfɔr tʃənˌtɛl ər /

Or fortuneteller

noun

a person who claims the ability to predict the future.

fortune-teller British

noun

a person who makes predictions about the future as by looking into a crystal ball, reading palms, etc

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

fortune-telling

adjective

Etymology

Origin of fortune-teller

First recorded in 1580–90; fortune + teller ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

You’re a generous parent, not a Federal Reserve committee member or a Nobel Prize-winning economist — and certainly not a fortune teller.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 7, 2025

Taking a spin as a fortune teller, the former “Saturday Night Live” cast member predicted that adoring fans would soon turn on Goggins, just as they had with Pascal.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 29, 2025

No one is a fortune teller and can predict the future.

From Salon • Oct. 3, 2024

"I'm not a fortune teller - I never know when I will be attacked," the YouTube content creator told the BBC.

From BBC • Mar. 22, 2024

It was one of the two boys who had been waiting with the fortune teller.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023