incantation
Americannoun
-
incantations
plural
-
the chanting or uttering of words purporting to have magical power.
-
the formula employed; a spell or charm.
-
magical ceremonies.
-
magic; sorcery.
- Synonyms:
- wizardry, black magic, witchcraft
-
repetitious wordiness used to conceal a lack of content; obfuscation.
Her prose too often resorts to incantation.
noun
-
ritual recitation of magic words or sounds
-
the formulaic words or sounds used; a magic spell
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
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").
Vocabulary lists containing incantation
Lord of the Flies
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Hobbit
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"The Devil and Tom Walker" by Washington Irving
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“Asmodeus” is a bewildering incantation about the coupling of poetry and squalor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
“Monument Eternal” is a talisman, an incantation that shows the author fearless and confident in her challenge to the distorting influence of race in America that James Weldon Johnson identified.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
To establish the right note of terror on a fog-strewn set by Arnulfo Maldonado that resembles the private chamber of a writer or madman, Page begins with Lady Macbeth’s chilling incantation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 17, 2026
Chef Anne Burrell had a way of turning instruction into incantation.
From Salon ● Sep. 4, 2025
She was reciting some sort of incantation between questions, probably something to give Seven strength.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
With dialogue about the nature of the divine, processed incantations and titles such as “The Word Becomes Flesh,” Boards of Canada has spiritual matters in mind throughout “Inferno.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 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
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
His words and imaginations were his incantations to the world, and to himself.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 9, 2025
He muttered more incantations as he reached into thin air and pulled out things I’m not sure I can describe, though I’ll try.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
