prophet Hear it!

prophet definition

prophet (präf′it)

noun

  1. a person who speaks for God or a god, or as though under divine guidance
  2. a religious teacher or leader regarded as, or claiming to be, divinely inspired
  3. a spokesman for some cause, group, movement, etc.
  4. a person who predicts future events in any way

Etymology: ME prophete < OFr < LL propheta, soothsayer, in LL(Ec), prophet < Gr prophētēs, interpreter of a god's will (in LXX, a Hebrew prophet; in N.T., an inspired preacher) < pro-, before + phanai, to speak: see ban

prophet Idioms

the Prophet

  1. among Muslims, Mohammed
  2. ☆ among Mormons, Joseph Smith

the Prophets

  1. one of the three major divisions of the Jewish Holy Scriptures, following the Pentateuch and preceding the Hagiographa
  2. the authors or subjects of the prophetic books in this division, including Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, Micah, Jeremiah, etc.

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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