Meanings
- uncountableDivination by chance meetings with any objects that present themselves, most commonly animals; for example, the superstition associated with a black cat crossing one's path.
Even objects that lie about haphazardly were fit for mantic purposes. The prcatice was called apantomancy.
1961, H.E. Wedeck, Treasury of Witchcraft1 more example
Apantomancy: Divination by means of any objects which happen to present themselves. To this class belong the omens drawn from chance meetings with a hare, an eagle, etc.
1920, Lewis Spence, An Encyclopædia of Occultism
Origin
- Ancient Greekἀπαντάω“to encounter”
- Englishapantomancy
From Ancient Greek ἀπαντάω (apantáō, “to encounter”) and μαντεία (manteía, “prophecy”).
More words from Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
apantomancy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/apantomancy
“apantomancy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/apantomancy. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “apantomancy,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/apantomancy.
Source: apantomancy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.