oracle

noun

or·​a·​cle ˈȯr-ə-kəl 

ˈär-

1

a

: a person (such as a priestess of ancient Greece) through whom a deity is believed to speak

the prophecies of the Delphic oracle

—D. F. Marks

b

: a shrine in which a deity reveals hidden knowledge or the divine purpose through such a person

c

: an answer or decision given by an oracle

ambiguous oracles

2

a

: a person giving wise or authoritative decisions or opinions

She became an oracle of pop culture.

b

: an authoritative or wise expression or answer

Examples of oracle in a Sentence

I met her long before she had become the oracle of pop culture.

Recent Examples on the Web

After the election, betting sites may look less like oracles than mirrors, reflecting the nation’s disunity back at us. —Lila Shroff, The Atlantic, 31 Oct. 2024

Not only that, but far from being omniscient, impersonal and impartial oracles, machine learning results can be heavily conditioned by the quality of the input data and by the assumptions in the machine learning algorithm’s modeling. —Federico Guerrini, Forbes, 8 Dec. 2024

In 2021, researchers at the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence released an AI model, Delphi, named after the ancient Greek religious oracle. —Sigal Samuel, Vox, 3 Dec. 2024

Her presence both as an oracle and a compassionate spiritual adviser has filled a void within the reality show that desperately needed filling, as its sometimes messy and impulsive cast members are not exactly known for considering the future when making decisions in the present. —Roya Backlund, StyleCaster, 16 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin oraculum, from orare to speak — more at oration

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

oracle

noun

or·​a·​cle ˈȯr-ə-kəl 

ˈär-

1

: a person (as a priestess of ancient Greece) through whom a god is believed to speak

2

: the place where a god speaks through an oracle

3

: an answer given by an oracle

4

: a person giving wise or final decisions or advice

Etymology

Middle English oracle "a person through whom a god speaks," from early French oracle (same meaning), from Latin oraculum (same meaning), from orare "to speak, pray" — related to adore, oration

Geographical Definition

Oracle

geographical name

Or·​a·​cle ˈȯr-ə-kəl 

ˈär-

unincorporated settlement north-northeast of Tucson in southern Arizona population 3686; site of a biome research facility