palmistry

[ pah-muh-stree ]

/ ˈpɑ mə stri /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: palmistry / palmist on Thesaurus.com

noun

the art or practice of telling fortunes and interpreting character from the lines and configurations of the palm of a person's hand.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Also called palm reading .

Origin of palmistry

1375–1425; late Middle English pawmestry, equivalent to pawmpalm¹ + -estry (origin obscure; cf. -y³)

OTHER WORDS FROM palmistry

palmist, noun

Words nearby palmistry

palm family, Palmgren, palmier, Palmira, Palm Islands, palmistry, palmitate, palmitic, palmitic acid, palmitin, palmitoleic acid

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use palmistry in a sentence

All you need is a competent plastic surgeon with an electric scalpel who has a basic knowledge of palmistry.
Your Future Is in the Palm of Your (Surgeon’s) Hand|Jake Adelstein, Nathalie-Kyoko Stucky|July 12, 2013|DAILY BEAST
I have brought the party hither, that you may use palmistry, or chiromancy if such is your pleasure.
Quentin Durward|Sir Walter Scott
Other Professors have stooped to it, but I—oh, no, it is playing palmistry a little bit too low down.
The Gay Lord Quex|Arthur W. Pinero
During the Christmas holidays she had been poring over an article on palmistry which she found in a magazine.
A Fortunate Term|Angela Brazil

Palmistry assigns fine, tapering fingers to "artistic temperament," and rightly, for fine fingers are necessary for fine work.
A Popular Handbook to the National Gallery, Volume I, Foreign Schools|Various
The amount of study given to the hand renders it probable that palmistry may have considerable value as a physiognomic science.
Buchanan's Journal of Man, February 1887|Various

British Dictionary definitions for palmistry

palmistry

/ (ˈpɑːmɪstrɪ) /

noun

the process or art of interpreting character, telling fortunes, etc, by the configuration of lines, marks, and bumps on a person's handAlso called: chiromancy

Derived forms of palmistry

palmist, noun

Word Origin for palmistry

C15 pawmestry, from paume palm 1; the second element is unexplained

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

palmistry

Origin of palmistry

OTHER WORDS FROM palmistry

Words nearby palmistry

Words related to palmistry

How to use palmistry in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for palmistry

Derived forms of palmistry

Word Origin for palmistry