What does apport mean?
An apport is an object that is claimed to appear suddenly and inexplicably in the presence of a spiritualist medium, as though it had been transported there by paranormal forces rather than carried in by human hands. The term is central to the vocabulary of physical mediumship, where séance-goers reported the arrival of stones, flowers, jewelry, and other items in sealed or closely watched rooms. The word comes from French, ultimately from Latin apportare, meaning 'to bring to,' which also gives English words like transport and export. Apports are not accepted by mainstream science; investigations from the heyday of Victorian spiritualism onward repeatedly exposed many claimed cases as conjuring tricks, with objects hidden on the medium's person or smuggled into the room. Today the word survives mainly in historical accounts of spiritualism, parapsychological literature, and skeptical discussions of alleged psychic phenomena.
nounAn object that is said to be transferred or materialized into the presence of a medium during a séance through paranormal means, without any physical explanation for its arrival.
- An object said to be conveyed into a séance room by paranormal means, appearing seemingly out of nowhere in the presence of a medium.
"During the séance, a small brass bell appeared on the table, which the medium's followers claimed was an apport from another realm."
"The investigators searched the locked room beforehand to rule out any possibility of a staged apport."
"Accounts of apports — flowers, coins, even live birds appearing mid-séance — filled the spiritualist press of the late nineteenth century."
Standard plural; used when referring to multiple such objects or to the phenomenon across different séances.
"The archive contains photographs of dozens of apports collected by early twentieth-century researchers."
In the heyday of Victorian spiritualism, mediums were sometimes caught hiding 'apports' in their sleeves — but believers insisted the real ones fell from the ceiling.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of apport
The word apport derives from French apport ('bringing, delivery'), formed from Latin apportare, meaning 'to bring to' or 'to convey toward,' itself built on portare, 'to carry.' It entered English usage in the context of nineteenth-century spiritualism, when French and British writers needed a term for objects allegedly conveyed into séances by spirits. It shares its Latin root with familiar words such as transport, export, import, and portable, all of which involve carrying or movement.
How apport is actually used
The word belongs almost entirely to the vocabulary of spiritualism and parapsychology, and is used both by believers and by skeptics describing claimed phenomena. It carries no everyday secular usage and is typically encountered in historical, occult, or skeptical literature.
Easily confused with apport
Rapport is a harmonious relationship of mutual understanding between people, whereas an apport is an object supposedly teleported into a séance by paranormal forces.