Occult
adj, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Definitions
- 1 Supernatural affairs. uncountable, usually, with-definite-article
"Due to my strong personal convictions / I wish to stress / That this record / In no way endorses / A belief in the occult"
- 2 supernatural practices and techniques wordnet
- 3 supernatural forces and events and beings collectively wordnet
- 1 To cover or hide from view. transitive
"The Earth occults the Moon during a lunar eclipse."
- 2 hide from view wordnet
- 3 To dissimulate, conceal, or obfuscate. rare, transitive
"[…]to do so would occult rather than illuminate the utterly unexpected and surprising character of his coming and of his reign."
- 4 become concealed or hidden from view or have its light extinguished wordnet
- 5 cause an eclipse of (a celestial body) by intervention wordnet
- 1 Secret; hidden from general knowledge; undetected.
"occult blood loss; occult cancer"
- 2 not visible, but chemically detectable.
"occult blood in the urine"
- 3 Related to the occult; pertaining to mysticism, magic, or astrology.
"The concoctions contrived by Italians were particularly in clamant demand, while the occult sciences of astrology and alchemy lent their support[.]"
- 4 Esoteric.
"Elbows almost touching they leaned at ease, idly reading the almost obliterated lines engraved there. ¶ "I never understood it," she observed, lightly scornful. "What occult meaning has a sun-dial for the spooney? I'm sure I don't want to read riddles in a strange gentleman's optics.""
- 1 having an import not apparent to the senses nor obvious to the intelligence; beyond ordinary understanding wordnet
- 2 hidden and difficult to see wordnet
Example
More examples"Tom has studied the occult sciences."
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin occultus (“hidden, secret”).