Telepathic means able to communicate thoughts directly from one mind to another, without speaking, writing, or using any of the normal five senses. Someone with telepathic powers could know what you're thinking without you saying a word, or send you a message just by thinking it.

While telepathy appears constantly in science fiction stories and superhero comics, scientists have never found real evidence that people can actually read minds or send thoughts telepathically.

Still, you'll often hear people use telepathic more loosely. When best friends finish each other's sentences or twins seem to know when the other is hurt, someone might joke that they have a telepathic connection. What they really mean is that these people know each other so well, and pay such close attention to tiny clues in facial expressions and body language, that it almost seems like mind reading.

A related word is telepathy, the noun for this supposed ability. In stories, characters with telepathy might form a telepathic link that lets them share thoughts, or they might use their telepathic abilities to sense danger or lies.