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hocus

[ hoh-kuhs ]
/ ˈhoʊ kəs /
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verb (used with object), ho·cused, ho·cus·ing or (especially British) ho·cussed, ho·cus·sing.
to play a trick on; hoax; cheat.
to stupefy with drugged liquor.
to drug (liquor).
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Origin of hocus

First recorded in 1665–75; short for hocus-pocus
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use hocus in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for hocus

hocus
/ (ˈhəʊkəs) /

verb -cuses, -cusing, -cused, -cuses, -cussing or -cussed (tr) rare
to take in; trick
to stupefy, esp with a drug
to add a drug to (a drink)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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