Definition

1. Noun:
   • A person who claims or is believed to have the ability to communicate thoughts directly from one mind to another without using speech, writing, or other ordinary sensory channels. This meaning refers to someone with the supposed psychic power of telepathy.
   • A performer, such as a magician or mentalist, who gives the appearance of reading thoughts or transmitting ideas, often through the use of tricks, codes, or signals from an accomplice. This meaning describes an entertainer who simulates telepathic abilities.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Psychic Ability):
  • The renowned telepathist claimed she could receive messages from people miles away.
  • In the science fiction novel, the alien was a natural telepathist, able to share complex ideas instantly.
• Noun (Performer):
  • The stage telepathist amazed the audience by correctly guessing the item a volunteer was thinking of.
  • He worked as a telepathist in a carnival, using clever cues from his partner to create the illusion of mind-reading.

Advanced Usage

• The term is often used in contexts discussing paranormal phenomena or psychic research.
  • The study aimed to test the claims of several self-proclaimed telepathists under controlled laboratory conditions.
• It can appear in critical or skeptical contexts to describe performers who simulate psychic powers.
  • The investigator revealed that the famous telepathist was merely a skilled magician using classic mentalism techniques.

Variants and Related Words

• Telepathy (n): The supposed communication of thoughts or ideas directly from one mind to another without using the known senses.
  • Many stories explore the concept of telepathy.
• Telepathic (adj): Relating to or having the apparent power of telepathy.
  • They seemed to have a telepathic connection.
• Mentalist (n): A performer who demonstrates highly developed mental or intuitive abilities, such as mind-reading, often through illusion.
  • The mentalist's act was a combination of psychology, observation, and trickery.

Synonyms

• Mind reader: A person who can discern or is thought to discern the thoughts of another.
• Mentalist: (Especially for the performer meaning) A person who performs illusions of mind-reading, clairvoyance, and precognition.
• Thought-transference agent: (Formal/technical) A person involved in the supposed direct transmission of thoughts.

Related Phrases

• To practice telepathy: To engage in the attempted direct communication of thoughts.
  • The twins claimed they could practice telepathy.
• Telepathic communication: The alleged process of communicating via thought alone.
  • The novel's heroes used telepathic communication to coordinate their plans secretly.

Related Idioms

• To be on the same wavelength: (Idiom) To think in a similar way and to understand each other well. This idiom conveys a sense of mutual understanding that is metaphorically similar to, but not literal, telepathy.
  • We work so well together; it's like we're on the same wavelength.

Noun

1. a magician who seems to discern the thoughts of another person (usually by clever signals from an accomplice)
2. someone with the power of communicating thoughts directly