Meaning & use
graphologist
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A person who studies handwriting to learn about the writer's character or to check if a document is genuine.
Grammar: Countable; use 'a graphologist' or 'graphologists' for more than one.
Patterns
- a graphologist examines something
- work as a graphologist
The police hired a graphologist to examine the threatening letters.
As a graphologist, she can often tell if someone is lying by looking at their handwriting.
He trained as a graphologist after retiring from the police force.
nouncountabletechnical
A specialist in graphology, the study of handwriting as a way to understand people.
Grammar: Often used in academic or professional contexts.
Patterns
- consult a graphologist
- a qualified graphologist
The court accepted the graphologist's report as evidence.
She is a graphologist who has published several books on the subject.
Word forms
| plural | graphologists |
|---|
Common combinations
- forensic graphologist
- The forensic graphologist compared the ransom note with the suspect's handwriting.
- professional graphologist
- They consulted a professional graphologist to analyze the old diary.
- graphologist's analysis
- The graphologist's analysis suggested the writer was under stress.
- hire a graphologist
- The company decided to hire a graphologist to screen job applicants.
Synonyms and how they differ
- handwriting expert
- This is a broader term that can include graphologists, but often refers to someone who only compares handwriting samples for authenticity, not personality.
- graphoanalyst
- A less common synonym that specifically refers to someone who analyzes handwriting for personality; it is used in some regions but is not as widely understood.
Word family
- graphology noun
- The study of handwriting, especially as a way to understand personality.
- graphological adjective
- Relating to graphology or the analysis of handwriting.
Commonly confused: graphologist or graphologist?
graphologist vs graphologist
Not to be confused with 'graphologist' (a specialist in graphs and charts), which is a different word.
Practice
What is a graphologist most likely to do?
Choose one answer.
A graphologist analyzes handwriting for personality or authenticity, not for making charts (that's a graphologist in a different sense) or chemistry.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “graphologist”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.