prophetess

noun

Definition of prophetessnext
as in sibyl

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of prophetess Brown, a debut novelist and medieval scholar, renders Elizabeth’s rise from impoverished servant to popular prophetess in admirably human and complex terms. — Elizabeth Toohey, Christian Science Monitor, 14 Apr. 2026 Positioning Robin as an unheeded prophetess and an eventual participant in Ethan’s undoing is a smart way to explore the sexism of the media world at the time. — Jesse Green, New York Times, 6 Feb. 2024 The words belong to Cassandra, the Trojan prophetess doomed to be disbelieved. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 25 Jan. 2024 Hecuba, the queen, goes to the wily Odysseus; her daughter-in-law Andromache, Hector’s widow, to Achilles’ son, Pyrrhus; and her daughter Cassandra, a prophetess doomed never to be believed, to the victorious general Agamemnon. — Daniel Mendelsohn, The New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2021 The [prophetess Deborah], for example, accompanies an army into battle. — Jennifer Wollock, The Conversation, 23 Mar. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prophetess
  1. sibyl
  2. seer
  3. diviner
  4. soothsayer
  5. prophet
  6. wisewoman
  7. oracle
  8. fortune-teller
Noun
  • The artist’s ceiling for the Sistine Chapel had included 20 nude males as supporting figures above the prophets and sibyls.
    — Virginia Raguin, The Conversation, 19 Feb. 2026
  • Sherman has been the sibyl of such proliferating confusions, toying with representation’s integrity and the boundaries of identity for more than four decades.
    — Nancy Princenthal, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2024
Definition of sibyl
Noun
  • This overarching label encompassed Anabaptists, Baptists, Brownists, Levelers, Antinomians, Presbyterians, Ranters and many of the highly individual prophets and seers of 1640s Britain.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Not in seers, not in sibyls, not in spirits from the great beyond.
    — Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 30 June 2026
Definition of seer
Noun
  • Ancient Chinese scholars made records of solar eclipses, and diviners made prophecies during these auspicious events.
    — Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 6 Aug. 2026
  • While often presented as the act of using beauty practices to manifest your desires, diviner and spiritual wellness teacher Tatianna Tarot would caution against getting too attached to semantics.
    — Essence, Essence, 23 Nov. 2025
Definition of diviner
Noun
  • The pricing of the iPhone Duo and Apple's other new devices was reasonable and below what many tech soothsayers had predicted.
    — Mike Snider, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Pollsters, the modern equivalent of soothsayers, are increasingly wrong.
    — Cal Thomas, Arkansas Online, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of soothsayer
Noun
  • Also known as Umm Umara, the companion of prophet Muhammad took up arms at the Battle of Uhud.
    — Sara Harmouch, The Conversation, 1 Oct. 2026
  • This overarching label encompassed Anabaptists, Baptists, Brownists, Levelers, Antinomians, Presbyterians, Ranters and many of the highly individual prophets and seers of 1640s Britain.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of prophet
Noun
  • Not everyone can labor in a cabin with the wisewoman of their choosing.
    — Jennifer Block, Longreads, 10 Mar. 2020
Definition of wisewoman
Noun
  • Data is ultimately just a reflection of the past, not an oracle for what should come next.
    — David Farbman, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
  • For example, the Ram Shalaka oracle is based on the Hindu scripture Ramcharitmanas, a 16th-century retelling of the ancient Indian epic Ramayana.
    — Ambuj Tewari, The Conversation, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of oracle
Noun
  • The first teaser for the film lays out that mission, with Gail speaking with a fortune teller who knows way too well the specifics of Gail’s situation and sets her on her path forward.
    — Brian Welk, IndieWire, 24 Apr. 2026
  • Toombs is best known today as the face of fortune teller Madame Leota inside the crystal ball in the Haunted Mansion’s seance circle at Disneyland.
    — Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 23 Apr. 2026
Definition of fortune-teller

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Cite this Entry

“Prophetess.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prophetess. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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