esper

See also: Esper

English

Etymology

ESP +‎ -er from ESP (“extrasensory perception”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛsˌpɝ/

Noun

esper (plural espers)

1. A person who practices the development of psychic ability.
2. (chiefly science fiction) A person who has extrasensory perception.
   • 1942 June, Edward Elmer Smith, “Storm Cloud on Deka”, in Astonishing Stories‎^[1], volume 3, number 4:

     I don't know why anybody would be spying on me, either, but—I'm neither a Lensman nor an esper, but I'd swear that somebody's peeking over my shoulder half the time.

   • 1950 August, Alfred Bester, “The Devil's Invention”, in Astounding Science Fiction‎^[2], volume 45, number 6, page 139:

     But Espers can’t pick up any EK brain pattern farther than the horizon. It’s direct wave transmission. Even large objects cannot be penetrated. A building, say, or a—

Hyponyms

• (person having extrasensory perception): telepath

Translations

person

• Japanese: 超能力者 (ja) (ちょうのうりょくしゃ, chōnōryokusha), エスパー (ja) (esupā)
• Korean: 초능력자 (choneungnyeokja)
• Russian: экстрасе́нс (ru) m (ekstrasɛ́ns), телепа́т (ru) m (telepát)
• Spanish: esper

Anagrams

• Peers, Perse, Prees, Reeps, Spree, peers, per se, perse, pères, speer, spere, spree

Old Occitan

Etymology

Probably a deverbal of esperar.

Noun

esper m (oblique plural espers, nominative singular espers, nominative plural esper)

1. hope

References

• Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002) “spērāre”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), volumes 12: Sk–š, page 165