Definition

Noun: - The practice of staring into a crystal ball or other reflective surface in an attempt to perceive future events or distant happenings. It is a form of divination or scrying, often associated with fortune-telling and mysticism.

Usage

• As a subject or object: The term is used to name the activity itself.
  • Crystal gazing is an ancient form of divination.
  • She dismissed his predictions as mere crystal gazing.
• As a modifier: It can be used attributively to describe related things.
  • He had a crystal gazing session. (Here, "crystal gazing" acts as an adjective modifying "session").

Examples

Advanced Usage

• Metaphorical Use: Often used figuratively to criticize attempts to predict the future, especially in business, politics, or economics, implying they are speculative, unscientific, or based on guesswork rather than facts.
  • The economist accused his rivals of economic crystal gazing.
  • Trying to predict the winner this far in advance is just crystal gazing.

Variants and Related Words

• Crystal gazer (noun): A person who practices crystal gazing.
  • The crystal gazer claimed to see a long journey in my future.
• Scrying (noun): The broader practice of divination by looking into a reflective surface, which includes crystal gazing.
• Divination (noun): The general practice of seeking knowledge of the future or the unknown by supernatural means.

Synonyms

• Fortune-telling
• Prophecy (though this often implies divine inspiration)
• Soothsaying
• Augury

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Gaze into a crystal ball: A verb phrase meaning to attempt to predict the future, often used metaphorically.
  • I can't gaze into a crystal ball and tell you if the stock will rise.
• (As) clear as crystal: An idiom meaning very easy to understand. (Note: This idiom is related to the clarity of crystal, not the practice of gazing).
  • His instructions were as clear as crystal.

Noun

1. staring into a crystal ball to arouse visions of future or distant events