guru

American  

[goor-oo, goo-roo] / ˈgʊər u, gʊˈru /

noun

• gurus
  plural

1. Hinduism. a preceptor giving personal religious instruction.

2. an intellectual or spiritual guide or leader.

3. any person who counsels or advises; mentor.

   The elder senator was her political guru.

4. a leader in a particular field.

   the city's cultural gurus.

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guru British  

/ ˈɡuːruː, ˈɡʊruː /

noun

1. a Hindu or Sikh religious teacher or leader, giving personal spiritual guidance to his disciples

2. derogatory a leader or chief theoretician of a movement, esp a spiritual or religious cult

3. facetious a leading authority in a particular field

   a cricketing guru

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guru Cultural  

1. In Hinduism, a teacher or spiritual leader.

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Discover More

By extension, a “guru” is a teacher who attracts disciples or followers.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• guruship
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• gurus
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of guru

1820–30; < Hindi gurū < Sanskrit guru venerable, weighty

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Explanation

A guru is a spiritual teacher and leader, particularly in the Hindu and Buddhist traditions. It has been said that your guru will find you when you are ready for your study — your journey — to begin. The noun guru is a Sanskrit word which also means “weighty,” or “grave.” A guru might teach you about meditation and compassion, or how to live your life according to certain precepts and truths. There is also another kind of guru — an expert leader in any field. You can be a guru of accounting or even of pizza-making if you are very good at it and can guide others to greater understanding.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

guru gurus

He could also get some political cover, in the form of an ongoing review by the longtime policy guru Baroness Casey.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026

Anyone such as, say, former Miami Dolphins coach and purported offensive guru Mike McDaniel?

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026

It includes stars from New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s team, including Tascha Van Auken, who led the campaign’s field operation, and Cea Weaver, his housing guru.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

"All of us, including the volunteers and support teams are deeply anguished," the Hindu guru, whose real name is Jagdish Vasudev, added.

From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026

Paris was focused on Sinclair when out of the corner of his eye he saw a man enter the room and head toward the tech guru.

From "City Spies" by James Ponti

While the word has been co-opted and corrupted by vision-board romantics and TikTok gurus, it’s still the key to making what we want happen.

From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026

Jesse Mecham wants to motivate you about money the way fitness gurus get you up off the couch to train for a 5K.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026

He says he often sees self-proclaimed "fitness gurus" on social media who are encouraging others to reduce their sleep to fit more in, but he believes that's not the answer.

From BBC ● Feb. 21, 2026

The rule is wildly popular with governance gurus and policy advocates.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2026

Cadres of expensive professionals—lawyers, accountants, computer gurus, helpline responders—drain vast sums of money from the economy to clarify poorly drafted text.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

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Related Words

• master
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