witch doctor

American  

noun

1. a person in some societies who attempts to cure sickness and to exorcise evil spirits by the use of magic.

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witch doctor British  

noun

1. Also called: shaman.   medicine man.  a man in certain societies, esp preliterate ones, who appears to possess magical powers, used esp to cure sickness but also to harm people

2. a person who seeks out or hunts witches in some African tribal cultures

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Etymology

Origin of witch doctor

First recorded in 1710–20

Example Sentences

In Namibia, “for a witch doctor to make a ruling on whether or not you are a witch, you have to pay him a lot of money,” Holtzhausen says.

From Scientific American • May 31, 2023

He also claimed that the midfielder mixed with criminals and he repeated claims that Paul Pogba employed a witch doctor.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 23, 2022

Llegó el curanderooo — Tony was playing his summer mix, “Sacude,” and I had arrived just in time for my favorite part, when Tego Calderón announces himself as the healer, the witch doctor.

From New York Times • Sep. 15, 2021

Steinbeck said he got the hummingbird from a witch doctor, and wrote that it holds “just about all the magic there is in the world.”

From Washington Times • Jan. 29, 2020

In my frenzy, I somehow believed, I don’t know why I believed it, that only a witch doctor could help me.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane