預言者(よげんしゃ)

よげんしゃ
noun
prophet; one who delivers divine messages
religionperson
1. prophet; one who delivers divine messages
A person believed to speak on behalf of God or a divine being, conveying sacred messages or commands to humanity. Used specifically in religious contexts.
モーセは偉大(いだい)な預言者(よげんしゃ)だった。
Moses was a great prophet.
旧約(きゅうやく)聖書(せいしょ)には多(おお)くの預言者(よげんしゃ)が登場(とうじょう)する。
Many prophets appear in the Old Testament.
預言者(よげんしゃ)は神(かみ)の言葉(ことば)を人々(ひとびと)に伝(つた)える役割(やくわり)を担(にな)っていたとされる。
The prophet is said to have borne the role of conveying God's word to the people.

Written with 預(よ) (entrust; deposit) rather than 予(よ) (beforehand), distinguishing it from 予言者(よげんしゃ) (predictor; foreteller). The kanji 預(よ) conveys the idea of being entrusted with a divine message — the prophet receives God's words and delivers them, rather than simply predicting the future.

Kanji distinction

  • 預言者(よげんしゃ): prophet — a person entrusted with divine words (religious context)
  • 予言者(よげんしゃ): predictor; soothsayer — a person who foretells the future (secular context)

In practice, both are pronounced identically and are sometimes confused, but careful writers maintain the distinction, especially in biblical and theological texts.

Common collocations

Similar words

  • 予言者(よげんしゃ): predictor; soothsayer — secular term for someone who predicts the future
  • 聖人(せいじん): saint — a holy person, but not necessarily one who delivers divine messages
  • 教祖(きょうそ): religious founder; cult leader — the originator of a religious group
general
Added 2026.4.28 21:22 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
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