Telepathy is the idea of communicating thoughts directly from one mind to another without speaking, writing, or using any of the five senses. If you could know exactly what your friend was thinking without them saying a word, or send them a mental message without speaking, that would be telepathy.

Scientists have studied telepathy extensively, but despite many attempts, no one has ever proven it actually exists. What seems like telepathy usually turns out to be something else: you might guess what your best friend is thinking because you know them so well, not because thoughts traveled between your brains. When twins say they can feel each other's feelings, they're probably picking up on subtle facial expressions and body language they've learned to read over years together.

Telepathy appears constantly in science fiction and fantasy stories. Professor X in the X-Men comics can read minds and project thoughts. Characters in many books and movies use telepathic powers to communicate during dangerous situations when speaking aloud would give them away. These stories explore what it might be like if telepathy were real, even though it remains firmly in the realm of imagination rather than science.

The adjective form is telepathic, as in “a telepathic connection between friends” or “telepathic abilities.”