What does chiromancer mean?
A chiromancer is a person who claims to read a person's character or foretell their future by examining the lines, shapes, and features of the palm of the hand — a practice known as chiromancy or, more commonly today, palmistry. The word derives from Greek roots meaning 'hand' and 'divination', and entered English in the seventeenth century, when interest in occult arts flourished. While 'palm reader' is the more familiar term in modern usage, 'chiromancer' retains a formal, literary, or faintly archaic flavour, and writers often deploy it to evoke mystery, fairground theatrics, or scepticism toward fortune-telling. A chiromancer might appear at a carnival, in historical fiction, or as a figure of gentle ridicule in an article debunking pseudoscience. Because the profession rests on claims unsupported by evidence, the word frequently carries an implicit tone of doubt or amusement, though it can also be used neutrally in discussions of folklore, history, and popular culture.
nounA person who practises divination by reading the lines and features of the palm of a person's hand; a fortune-teller who specializes in palmistry.
- A practitioner of palmistry who interprets the lines and shape of the hand to predict a person's future or character.
"The chiromancer studied the traveller's open palm and predicted a long journey ahead."
"At the village fair, a chiromancer in a silk scarf promised to reveal each visitor's destiny for a shilling."
"Sceptics dismissed her as a mere chiromancer, but she insisted that the lines of the hand told stories written at birth."
Regular plural formation; standard countable noun referring to individual practitioners.
"In the market square, chiromancers competed with astrologers for the attention of passers-by."
The word 'chiromancer' literally means 'hand-diviner' — it comes from Greek words for hand and prophecy, so every palm reading you've ever heard of was named in ancient Greek two thousand years ago.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of chiromancer
Chiromancer comes from the Greek 'cheir', meaning hand, combined with 'manteia', meaning divination or prophecy, via post-classical Latin and French forms such as 'chiromancien'. The related term chiromancy entered English in the early 17th century, during a period when Renaissance scholars revived interest in classical arts of divination, and 'chiromancer' soon followed to denote its practitioner. The same Greek root 'cheir' gives English several other words involving hands, including 'chiropractic' and, through Greek-derived Latin 'chirurgia', ultimately 'surgery'.
Related word forms
How chiromancer is actually used
The word has a somewhat literary or old-fashioned register; 'palm reader' or 'palmist' is more common in everyday speech. It often carries connotations of mysticism, showmanship, or fraudulence depending on context, and may be used slightly ironically in modern writing.
Easily confused with chiromancer
A chiropractor treats physical ailments of the spine and joints, whereas a chiromancer reads palms to divine the future.
Chiromancy is the practice or art of palm reading itself, while a chiromancer is the person who performs it.