psychologist

noun

psy·​chol·​o·​gist sī-ˈkä-lə-jist 

plural psychologists

: a person who specializes in the study of mind and behavior or in the treatment of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders : a specialist in psychology

Examples of psychologist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Atkin leans on her sports psychologist a little less now. —Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 21 Feb. 2026

Sports psychologist Julie Hayden says the moment represents a turning point. —Rachel Hale, USA Today, 21 Feb. 2026

Maria Loconsole, a comparative psychologist at the University of Padua in Italy, and her colleagues decided to investigate the bouba-kiki effect in baby chicks because the birds could be tested almost immediately after hatching, before their brain would be influenced by exposure to the world. —Cody Cottier, Scientific American, 19 Feb. 2026

Work with a psychologist following that 2024 injury had forced her out of her comfort zone. —Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 18 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1871, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing psychologist

• clinical psychologist

Rhymes for psychologist

• apologist
• biologist
• ecologist
• ethnologist
• geologist
• hydrologist
• neurologist
• oncologist
• pathologist
• philologist
• technologist
• urologist

Kids Definition

psychologist

noun

psy·​chol·​o·​gist

sī-ˈkäl-ə-jəst

: a specialist in psychology

Medical Definition

psychologist

noun

psy·​chol·​o·​gist sī-ˈkäl-ə-jəst 

: a specialist in psychology

especially : a practitioner of clinical psychology, counseling, or guidance