incantation

[in-kan-tey-shuhn]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR incantation ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the chanting or uttering of words purporting to have magical power.

the formula employed; a spell or charm.

magical ceremonies.

magic; sorcery.

repetitious wordiness used to conceal a lack of content; obfuscation: Her prose too often resorts to incantation.

Nearby words

Origin of incantation

1350–1400; Middle English < Late Latin incantātiōn- (stem of incantātiō), equivalent to incantāt(us) past participle of incantāre to put a spell on, bewitch (see enchant, -ate¹) + -iōn- -ion

SYNONYMS FOR incantation

4. witchcraft, black magic, wizardry.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR incantation ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formsin·can·ta·tion·al, in·can·ta·to·ry

[in-kan-tuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] /ɪnˈkæn təˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i/, adjectivein·can·ta·tor, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for incantation

It is hard to make out exactly what she is saying, but her words act almost like an incantation.
Giovanni Zoppé’s Real-Life Family Circus|Malcolm Jones|October 21, 2012|DAILY BEAST
It is therefore of importance that we use in our incantation the martial part of my magical apparatus.
The Magic of the Middle Ages|Viktor Rydberg
But the incantation would not work, probably because he could not keep his mind empty.
Mr. Prohack|E. Arnold Bennett
The cacique had finished his incantation over the crossed feathers, and interred them properly.
Lone Pine|R. B. (Richard Baxter) Townshend

I think, said Mrs. Temple, looking towards the wood, that Virginia's song acted as an incantation.
Hansford: A Tale of Bacon's Rebellion|St. George Tucker
Merodach, by whose spells the sick are re stored, will inflict upon the guilty one a dropsy which no incantation can cure.
History Of Egypt, Chalda, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, Volume 3 (of 12)|G. Maspero

British Dictionary definitions for incantation

incantation

noun

ritual recitation of magic words or sounds

the formulaic words or sounds used; a magic spell

Derived Formsincantational, adjective

Word Origin for incantation

C14: from Late Latin incantātiō an enchanting, from incantāre to repeat magic formulas, from Latin, from in- ² + cantāre to sing; see enchant

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

Word Origin and History for incantation

incantation

late 14c., from Old French incantacion "spell, exorcism" (13c.), from Latin incantationem (nominative incantatio) "art of enchanting," noun of action from past participle stem of incantare "bewitch, charm," literally "sing spells" (see enchantment).