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horoscope

[hawr-uh-skohp, hor‐]
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noun
  1. a diagram of the heavens, showing the relative position of planets and the signs of the zodiac, for use in calculating births, foretelling events in a person's life, etc.
  2. a prediction of future events or advice for future behavior based on such a diagram.
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Origin of horoscope

before 1050; Middle English, Old English horoscopus < Latin < Greek hōroskópos, equivalent to hōro-, combining form of hṓra hour + skópos -scope
Related formshor·o·scop·ic [hawr-uh-skop-ik, ‐skoh-pik, hor-uh‐] /ˌhɔr əˈskɒp ɪk, ‐ˈskoʊ pɪk, ˌhɒr ə‐/, adjectiveun·hor·o·scop·ic, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

astrologyprediction

Examples from the Web for horoscope

Historical Examples

  • Unmistakably then it was fate that had cast the horoscope of his and Allis's life together.

    Thoroughbreds

    W. A. Fraser

  • That's my horoscope, and after that the solar system may be ripe for picking.

  • Standing by me she asked if I had thought about her horoscope.

    The Memoires of Casanova, Complete

    Jacques Casanova de Seingalt

  • I obtained this favour, and I then gave Madame Morin the horoscope.

    The Memoires of Casanova, Complete

    Jacques Casanova de Seingalt

  • He thinks, I may not live to behold much of this, but would like to see a cast of his horoscope.

    Oswald Langdon

    Carson Jay Lee

British Dictionary definitions for horoscope

horoscope

noun
  1. the prediction of a person's future based on a comparison of the zodiacal data for the time of birth with the data from the period under consideration
  2. the configuration of the planets, the sun, and the moon in the sky at a particular moment
  3. Also called: chart a diagram showing the positions of the planets, sun, moon, etc, at a particular time and place
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Derived Formshoroscopic (ˌhɒrəˈskɒpɪk), adjective

Word Origin

Old English horoscopus, from Latin, from Greek hōroskopos ascendant birth sign, from hōra hour + -scope
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

Word Origin and History for horoscope

n.

c.1050, horoscopus, from Latin horoscopus; the modern form is considered to be a mid-16c. reborrowing via Middle French horoscope. Ultimately from Greek horoskopos "nativity, horoscope," also "one who casts a horoscope," from hora "hour" (see year) + skopos "watching" (see scope (n.1)), in reference to the hour of one's birth.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper