ˈpräfə̇t, usu -ə̇d.+V noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English prophete, from Old French, from Latin propheta, from Greek prophētēs, from pro before, for + -phētēs (from phanai to say, speak) — more at for , ban
1. : one who speaks for God or a deity : a divinely inspired revealer, interpreter, or spokesman: as
a. : an individual believed in ancient Israel to be possessed of clairvoyance
is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire of the Lord? — 2 Kings 3:11 (Revised Standard Version)
b. : a member of a band of religious ecstatics believed in ancient Israel to be wonder workers and soothsayers
a band of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them, prophesying — 1 Sam 10:5 (Revised Standard Version)
c. often capitalized : the writer of one of the prophetic books of the Old Testament
d. : an officer in a Christian church ; specifically : one in the early church interpreting God's will under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit
e. usually capitalized : a person regarded by a group of followers as the final authoritative revealer of God's will
Muhammad, the Prophet of Allah to Muslims
to all his followers, Zoroaster is the Prophet
f. usually capitalized : the accredited leader of a religious group (as the Mormons)
2. : one gifted with more than ordinary spiritual and moral insight : seer
mighty prophet … on whom those truths do rest which we are toiling all our lives to find — William Wordsworth
especially : an inspired poet
3. : one who foretells future events : predictor
in defiance of all the prophets of doom
weather prophet
4. : an effective or leading spokesman for a cause, doctrine, or group
the prophet of higher education for the many — J.S.Reeves
one of the prophets of socialism
prophet of literary realism
5. Christian Science
a. : a spiritual seer
b. : disappearance of material sense before the conscious facts of spiritual Truth