invocation

American  

[in-vuh-key-shuhn] / ˌɪn vəˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

• invocations
  plural

1. the act of invoking or calling upon a deity, spirit, etc., for aid, protection, inspiration, or the like; supplication.

2. any petitioning or supplication for help or aid.

3. a form of prayer invoking God's presence, especially one said at the beginning of a religious service or public ceremony.

4. an entreaty for aid and guidance from a Muse, deity, etc., at the beginning of an epic or epiclike poem.

5. the act of calling upon a spirit by incantation.

6. the magic formula used to conjure up a spirit; incantation.

7. the act of calling upon or referring to something, as a concept or document, for support and justification in a particular circumstance.

8. the enforcing or use of a legal or moral precept or right.

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invocation British  

/ ˌɪnvəˈkeɪʃən, -trɪ, ɪnˈvɒkətərɪ /

noun

1. the act of invoking or calling upon some agent for assistance

2. a prayer asking God for help, forgiveness, etc, esp as part of a religious service

3. an appeal for inspiration and guidance from a Muse or deity at the beginning of a poem

4. 1. the act of summoning a spirit or demon from another world by ritual incantation or magic

   2. the incantation used in this act

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preinvocation
  noun
• invocational
  adjective
• invocatory
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• invocations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of invocation

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English invocacio(u)n, from Latin invocātiōn-, stem of invocātiō “a calling upon”; see invocate, -ion

Explanation

An invocation is an appeal to a higher power for help, such as a prayer for serenity or a plea to the rain gods during a drought. An invocation often refers to an appeal to something not of this world, such as a god or a spirit, but it can involve an appeal to any higher power, even one that is flesh and blood. During a close basketball game, for example, you may mutter an invocation to the former NBA star Michael Jordan asking that your team’s star player somehow gain the power to hit his jump shots. The word invocation can also be used in the sense of invoking a notable authority to support a position. If you say, “But my mom said I should never wear cheap clothing,” for example, that is an invocation of your mom in support of your desire to buy designer jeans.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

invocation invocations

He has a well-documented history of trafficking in conspiracy theories himself, which made his ambiguous invocation of federal involvement a kind of implicit validation to conspiracy theorists that there might be more to the story.

From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2026

Before she headed to the locker room, Burrell thanked everyone and called out a cheerful invocation, “Successful first game!”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026

Still, the mere invocation of license revocation has a powerful chilling effect.

From Salon ● Mar. 17, 2026

But Shakespeare as a brand remains unparalleled in our culture: Mere invocation of his work can confer a warm, orangey glow of importance upon an otherwise pedestrian reflection on it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 27, 2025

In a great slow gesture he stretched out his arms, the gesture of welcome that opens an invocation.

From "A Wizard of Earthsea" by Ursula K. Le Guin

Often, the invocations of doubling and role swapping seem hypothetical.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

Comparisons to the late-1990s dot-com bubble abound, as do invocations of the crash that followed.

From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2025

It is clear from the context of her repeated invocations that she uses Venn diagrams to clarify complicated situations.

From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2024

The extent to which this testimony negates the negative legal inferences one could draw from his first round of Fifth Amendment privilege invocations remains to be seen.

From Slate ● May 11, 2023

The ceremony continued for some time, with more perambulations and exchanges of secret passwords and hand signs, more invocations and singing, until C.P. found himself at last standing before the large central altar.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson