incantation

American  

[in-kan-tey-shuhn] / ˌɪn kænˈteɪ ʃən /

noun

incantations plural

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

2. the formula employed; a spell or charm.

3. magical ceremonies.

4. magic; sorcery.

   Synonyms:

   wizardry, black magic, witchcraft

5. repetitious wordiness used to conceal a lack of content; obfuscation.

   Her prose too often resorts to incantation.

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incantation British  

/ ˌɪnkænˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. ritual recitation of magic words or sounds

2. the formulaic words or sounds used; a magic spell

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• incantator
  noun
• incantational
  adjective
• incantatory
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• incantations
  plural

Etymology

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, -ate ¹) + -iōn- -ion

Explanation

"Double, double toil and trouble / Fire burn, and cauldron bubble." These lines, cackled by the Weird Sisters in Shakespeare's Macbeth, are part of the most famous incantation — or magic spell made of words — in English literature. Incantation shares a Latin source with enchant, both of which are related to chant. An incantation, then, summons a thing or action into being with words that are sung, spoken, or written. Long before it became the catchword of stage magicians, abracadabra was regarded as a powerful incantation capable of warding off serious disease. The phrase hocus pocus may be a corruption of a 17th-century incantation spoken during the Roman Catholic liturgy of the Eucharist, "hoc est corpus meum" ("this is my body").

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

incantation incantations

To boost the placement of these companies’ products in AI results, Bailyn’s company plants a sort of magic incantation, known as a “brand authority statement,” on at least 10 websites.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026

Chef Anne Burrell had a way of turning instruction into incantation.

From Salon ● Sep. 4, 2025

Nuns dangling rosary beads, tourists and student priests were among those who joined the gentle incantation of the rosary in the Vatican.

From BBC ● Feb. 27, 2025

The amalgamation of memory, historical fact and artifice yield an engrossing incantation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 31, 2024

“With an incantation, which will work only if you are concentrating, with all your might, on a single, very happy memory.”

From "Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban" by J.K. Rowling

While the tracks blend without interruption, many are stitched together with brief ambient interludes, during which Madonna often offers spiritual incantations about the healing power of music.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026

This ritual lasted an entire night and involved burning small figures made of wax and clay while an exorcist recited specific incantations.

From Science Daily ● May 5, 2026

Justin, the believer, is instantly alarmed by how these eerie tapes escalate from cute banter to ghostly crying babies and backward incantations.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 11, 2026

And, in a concession to modernity, as well as holding up feathers in a blessing for the King, the elder was reading his incantations from an iPhone.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2025

Maybe I’ll ask Dadi if she knows any incantations that’ll grow me a courage gland.

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon

Related Words

• enchantment
• hymn