Augur
/ˈɔː.ɡər/noun
An official diviner in ancient Rome who interpreted omens.
Did you know?The augurs believed that the flight patterns of birds were messages from the gods, guiding decisions of war and governance.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*(a)u̯g-
“to increase, to grow, to prosper”
Latin
Latin
augur
“a diviner; one who interprets omens by observing birds”
Late Latin
Late Latin
augurare
“to predict or foretell, especially through the observation of omens”
Old French
Old French
augurer
“to foretell, to predict”
Middle English
Middle English
auguren
“to predict or foretell, derived from Old French”
Modern English
English
augur
“to foretell, especially by interpreting signs or omens”
Explore more surprising origins