definitions

haruspex

[ huh-ruhs-peks, har-uh-speks ]
/ həˈrʌs pɛks, ˈhær əˌspɛks /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR haruspex ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural ha·rus·pi·ces [huh-ruhs-puh-seez] /həˈrʌs pəˌsiz/.

(in ancient Rome) one of a class of minor priests who practiced divination, especially from the entrails of animals killed in sacrifice.

RELATED WORDS

witch, seer, prognosticator, diviner, medium, sibyl, astrologer, forecaster, reader, wizard, bard, fortuneteller, soothsayer, oracle, augur, auspex, magus, clairvoyant, sorcerer, druid

Nearby words

hartnup disease, hartshorn, harum-scarum, harun al-rashid, harunobu, haruspex, haruspicy, harvard, harvard beets, harvard chair, harvard classification
Also aruspex.

Origin of haruspex

1575–85; < Latin, equivalent to haru- (akin to hīra intestine; see chord1) + spec- (stem of specere to look at) + -s nominative singular ending
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for haruspex

British Dictionary definitions for haruspex

haruspex

/ (həˈrʌspɛks) /

noun plural haruspices (həˈrʌspɪˌsiːz)

(in ancient Rome) a priest who practised divination, esp by examining the entrails of animals

Derived Forms

haruspical (həˈrʌspɪkəl), adjectiveharuspicy (həˈrʌspɪsɪ), noun

Word Origin for haruspex

C16: from Latin, probably from hīra gut + specere to look
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