In ancient Rome, a priest or official who interpreted omens by observing the flight and behavior of birds.
From Latin 'auspex,' from 'avis' (bird) + 'specere' (to look/watch). The root gives us 'auspices'—literally 'bird-watching' for divine signs.
Ancient Romans took bird-watching very seriously—an auspex was basically a spiritual consultant whose job was staring at pigeons and ravens to tell generals whether battles would succeed. It's where 'auspicious' comes from: good vibes from birds.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.