Auspex

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A practitioner of divination who interprets avian movements to foresee future events
2. An oracle who utilizes natural signs, particularly bird behavior, to provide insights or forecasts about forthcoming occurrences
3. A specialist in interpreting the behavior of birds to predict future happenings or uncover hidden truths

Etymology: In ancient Rome, an "auspex" was a state official whose job was to read the future from birds, and no major public decision was supposed to proceed without his blessing. The word is a compound of "avis" (bird) and a second element from "specere" (to look at), so it literally means "bird-viewer" or "one who watches birds." Romans watched flight patterns, the direction of birds, and what they seemed to signal, and the auspex's verdict could halt an assembly, a military campaign, or an election. The Latin ancestor of the word also gave English "auspicious," which originally meant "relating to augury" and only later came to mean "favourable." Where you see a good omen today, the Romans were looking at the flight of birds, and a bad sign could mean a delayed battle or a postponed vote.

Synonyms: diviner, seer, forecaster, omen reader, oracle

Antonyms: skeptic, disbeliever, doubter, realist, materialist