fortune-teller

American  

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

Or fortuneteller

noun

1. a person who claims the ability to predict the future.

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fortune-teller British  

noun

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

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Other Word Forms

• fortune-telling adjective

Etymology

Origin of fortune-teller

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

Example Sentences

“You can’t boss around the dead,” as the soothsayer tried to explain afterward, but Lady Constance was convinced the fortune-teller was a fraud, and spoke harshly about the incident for weeks afterward.

From Literature

All three children remembered how the fortune-teller had used a crystal ball to summon spirits from Beyond the Veil.

From Literature

“Does the fortune-teller have a plan?” the headmistress asked.

From Literature

“There is a fortune-teller there, an expert on curses and all things supernatural, who may be able to help us yet—but there is not much time.”

From Literature

“But Fredrick’s mother, the Widow Ashton, also believes the impostor Quinzy is Edward, and she swore she would never mistake her husband, no matter how changed his appearance. And there is a Gypsy fortune-teller of my acquaintance, Madame Ionesco. On a recent visit to Ashton Place, she used her powers to look Beyond the Veil, to where dead spirits dwell. She says Edward Ashton is not there.”

From Literature