clairvoyant

1 of 2

adjective

clair·​voy·​ant kler-ˈvȯi-ənt 

1

: having clairvoyance : able to see beyond the range of ordinary perception

claims to be clairvoyant

2

: of or relating to clairvoyance

clairvoyant powers

the clairvoyant revelations of a medium

clairvoyantly adverb

clairvoyant

2 of 2

noun

: one having the power of clairvoyance

Did you know?

The Meaning of Clairvoyant Is Clear

In French, "clairvoyant" literally means "clear-seeing," mentally or optically. The term made a brief appearance in English in the 17th century, as an adjective suggesting a keen sense of perception, but it did not become firmly established in the language until the 19th century. Today we most often apply this adjective to someone who essentially has ESP, an unexplainable ability to know or perceive things that others cannot. (We also now use "clairvoyant" as a noun for a person who has this ability.) But although "clairvoyant" is nearly always used in the ESP sense these days, the allusion to special powers frequently isn't dead serious. ("Are you clairvoyant? How did you know I was going to wear my flamingo shirt?")

Examples of clairvoyant in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Tyler Henry's clairvoyant abilities have brought him both fame and love. —Samantha Stutsman, People.com, 27 Sep. 2024

There’s a certain irony to the fact that a film that ties itself so clearly to a specific decade — cable TV can’t even get its head above water these days, let alone take over the world — could be so clairvoyant about the ways that 21st-century technologies would break our brains. —Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 17 Sep. 2024

Noun

At the height of the pandemic, when only a clairvoyant could have made an accurate 12-month business plan, my Bain & Company colleagues Darrell Rigby, Joost Spits, and Steve Berez wrote an article for Harvard Business Review offering a more agile approach. —David Michels, Forbes, 16 Sep. 2024

Two clairvoyants encouraged Latoya to move out of the house, but that wasn’t financially feasible for the family at the time. —Samantha Stutsman, Peoplemag, 4 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

French, from clair clear (from Latin clarus) + voyant, present participle of voir to see, from Latin vidēre — more at wit

First Known Use

Adjective

1844, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1846, in the meaning defined above

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Kids Definition

clairvoyant

1 of 2 adjective

clair·​voy·​ant kla(ə)r-ˈvȯi-ənt 

kle(ə)r-

: of, relating to, or having clairvoyance

clairvoyant

2 of 2 noun

: a person who has clairvoyance

Medical Definition

clairvoyant

1 of 2 adjective

clair·​voy·​ant -ənt 

: of or relating to clairvoyance

clairvoyant

2 of 2 noun

: one having the power of clairvoyance