Meaning & use
necromancer
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Meanings
nouncountable
A person who claims to speak with the dead or call up spirits, often to learn secrets or gain power.
Grammar: Takes a/an: the necromancer in the tale.
Patterns
- a necromancer who does something
The king hired a necromancer to speak with his dead father.
In the old tale, a necromancer raised a ghost to answer his questions.
Villagers feared the necromancer who lived in the tower.
nouncountable
In fantasy stories and games, a dark magician who commands undead creatures such as skeletons and zombies.
Grammar: Common in games and novels: a necromancer character.
Patterns
- a necromancer in something
The necromancer summoned an army of skeletons.
My character in the game is a level-ten necromancer.
The hero defeated the necromancer at the gates of the castle.
Word forms
| plural | necromancers |
|---|
Common combinations
- evil necromancer
- The evil necromancer cursed the valley.
- dark necromancer
- A dark necromancer lived beneath the ruined church.
- summon the dead
- The necromancer vowed to summon the dead.
- necromancer's tower
- Travelers avoided the necromancer's tower.
- play a necromancer
- In the campaign, she plays a necromancer.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sorcerer
- Sorcerer means any wielder of evil or powerful magic, but a necromancer works specifically with the dead.
- warlock
- Warlock is a male witch, and does not imply dealings with the dead as necromancer does.
- medium
- A medium claims to pass on messages from spirits, usually in a gentle, modern way, whereas a necromancer is a sinister magician who commands the dead.
- wizard
- Wizard is a general magic user and is usually friendlier, while necromancer is dark and specific.
Word family
- necromancy noun
- the art of communicating with or controlling the dead
- necromantic adjective
- relating to necromancy
- necropolis noun
- a large ancient cemetery
- necrosis noun
- the death of cells or tissue
Commonly confused: necromancer or soothsayer?
necromancer vs soothsayer
A soothsayer claims to predict the future, while a necromancer is said to deal with the dead. Both appear in old tales, so they are easily mixed up.
Practice
In a fantasy novel, which character is the necromancer?
Choose one answer.
A necromancer commands the dead, such as skeletons and ghosts. Healers, knights, and bakers do not work with the dead.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “necromancer”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.