rhabdomancy

American  

[rab-duh-man-see] / ˈræb dəˌmæn si /

noun

1. divination by means of a rod or wand, especially in discovering ores, springs of water, etc.

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rhabdomancy British  

/ ˈræbdəˌmænsɪ /

noun

1. divination for water or mineral ore by means of a rod or wand; dowsing; divining

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Other Word Forms

• rhabdomantist noun

Etymology

Origin of rhabdomancy

1640–50; < Late Greek rhabdomanteía; see rhabdo-, -mancy

Example Sentences

A more striking non-religious superstition, because people today still invest money in their mistaken belief, is water-witching, also variously known as dowsing, divining, or rhabdomancy.

From Salon • Jan. 13, 2013

We find rhabdomancy a popular form of divination among the Greeks, and also among the Romans.

From Curious Myths of the Middle Ages by Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine)

I refer to such organic forces as are popularly summed up under the words clairvoyance, mesmerism, rhabdomancy, animal magnetism, physical spiritualism.

From The Myths of the New World A Treatise on the Symbolism and Mythology of the Red Race of America by Brinton, Daniel Garrison

What this strange art of rhabdomancy is I know not, but the "weeping" ash in our garden by the Coln is one of the most beautiful and shapely trees I ever saw.

From A Cotswold Village by Gibbs, J. Arthur

But our village friend, though perhaps constructively right in his philosophizing, was certainly very defective in his acquaintance with the time-honoured art of rhabdomancy.

From Myths and myth-makers: Old Tales and Superstitions Interpreted by Comparative Mythology by Fiske, John