Dictionary.com
definitions

Magi

[mey-jahy]
See more synonyms for Magi on Thesaurus.com
plural noun, singular Ma·gus [mey-guh s] /ˈmeɪ gəs/
  1. (sometimes lowercase) the wise men, generally assumed to be three in number, who paid homage to the infant Jesus. Matt. 2:1–12.Compare Balthazar(def 1), Caspar(def 1), Melchior(def 1).
  2. (sometimes lowercase) the class of Zoroastrian priests in ancient Media and Persia, reputed to possess supernatural powers.
  3. (lowercase) astrologers.

Origin of Magi

see origin at Magus
Related formsMa·gi·an [mey-jee-uh n] /ˈmeɪ dʒi ən/, adjective

Magus

[mey-guh s]
noun, plural Ma·gi [mey-jahy] /ˈmeɪ dʒaɪ/.
  1. (sometimes lowercase) one of the Magi.
  2. (lowercase) a magician, sorcerer, or astrologer.
  3. (sometimes lowercase) a Zoroastrian priest.Compare Magi(def 2).

Origin of Magus

1615–25; < Latin < Greek mágos < Old Persian maguŝ; compare Avestan moγu
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for magi

wizard, sage, seer, magician, magi

Examples from the Web for magi

Contemporary Examples of magi

Historical Examples of magi

British Dictionary definitions for magi

magi

pl n singular magus (ˈmeɪɡəs)
  1. the Zoroastrian priests of the ancient Medes and Persians
  2. the three magi the wise men from the East who came to do homage to the infant Jesus (Matthew 2:1–12) and traditionally called Caspar, Melchior, and Balthazar
Derived Formsmagian (ˈmeɪdʒɪən), adjective

magus

noun plural magi (ˈmeɪdʒaɪ)
  1. a Zoroastrian priest
  2. an astrologer, sorcerer, or magician of ancient times

Word Origin for magus

C14: from Latin, from Greek magos, from Old Persian magus magician

Magus

noun
  1. Simon Magus New Testament a sorcerer who tried to buy spiritual powers from the apostles (Acts 8:9-24)
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 magi
n.

c.1200, "skilled magicians, astrologers," from Latin magi, plural of magus "magician, learned magician," from Greek magos, a word used for the Persian learned and priestly class as portrayed in the Bible (said by ancient historians to have been originally the name of a Median tribe), from Old Persian magush "magician" (see magic). Related: Magian.

Magus

n.

member of the ancient Persian priestly caste, late 14c., singular of magi (q.v.).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
magi in Culture

Magi

[(may-jeye)]

The sages who visited Jesus soon after his birth. (See Wise Men.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.