divination
part of speech
noun (uncountable; also a divination)
meaning for a pupil
1) Trying to find out about the future or hidden things by special or magical means, such as reading cards, stars or tea leaves. tree →
2) A clever guess or insight. tree →
sense in the lessons
In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: In the Torah it means trying to learn the future by magic or signs, which Israel is forbidden to do. Interpretation: Tradition teaches that Israel should rely on God and His prophets and not on omens. Balaam's words say that Israel needs no divination because God tells them what He will do. In the primary lessons: In history and religion lessons, many ancient peoples practised divination, such as the oracle at Delphi or Chinese oracle bones. In fantasy stories, divination is a kind of magic. In science lessons, it is an example of a claim that has no scientific evidence. The Bible forbids divination for believers. Phrases: «a form of divination», «practise divination».
examples
- Ye shall not eat with the blood; neither shall ye practise divination nor soothsaying. (Torah LEV.19.26, JPS 1917) tree →
- For there is no enchantment with Jacob, neither is there any divination with Israel; now is it said of Jacob and of Israel: 'What hath God wrought!' (Torah NUM.23.23, JPS 1917) tree →
- And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the rewards of divination in their hand; and they came unto Balaam, and spoke unto him the words of Balak. (Torah NUM.22.7, JPS 1917) tree →
- For there shall be no more any vain vision nor smooth divination within the house of Israel. (Prophets EZK.12.24, JPS 1917) tree →
- Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say: The LORD saith; albeit I have not spoken? (Prophets EZK.13.7, JPS 1917) tree →
- They have seen vanity and lying divination, that say: The LORD saith; and the LORD hath not sent them, yet they hope that the word would be confirmed! (Prophets EZK.13.6, JPS 1917) tree →
- The ancient Greeks visited the oracle for divination. tree →
- Reading tea leaves is a kind of divination. tree →
- In the story, the witch taught divination with a crystal ball. tree →
- Chinese kings used oracle bones for divination. tree →
- There is no scientific evidence that divination can predict the future. tree →
- The Bible tells believers not to practise divination. tree →
note
Mostly uncountable. Related: divine (to guess by magic, or relating to God), diviner (a person who does it). «Water divining» or dowsing is searching for water with a stick; tests have not shown it works.
In the corpora
- Ye shall not eat with the blood; neither shall ye practise divination nor soothsaying.
- For there shall be no more any vain vision nor smooth divination within the house of Israel.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «divination» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.