noun
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another name for sleight of hand
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cunning deception or trickery
Other Word Forms
- legerdemainist noun
Etymology
Origin of legerdemain
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English legerdemeyn, lygarde de mayne “skill in conjuring, sleight of hand,” from Middle French léger de main “nimble, skillful,” literally “light of hand” (unrecorded)
Explanation
When a magician waves his hands over a hat and pulls out a rabbit, he is performing an act of legerdemain or trickery. Legerdemain can be used literally to describe a magic trick, or figuratively to describe some other kind of trickery or deceit. If you and some friends cook up a scheme that involves telling complicated lies so that you can stay out all night, you are guilty of legerdemain. The word comes from the French léger de main which means dexterous, or light of hand.
Vocabulary lists containing legerdemain
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The Pearl
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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.
Sauer therefore engaged in his first bit of linguistic legerdemain, telling the court, “ ‘Allegiance’ is what jurisdiction means.”
From Slate • Apr. 2, 2026
We also meet Malini the Magician, about whose tricks and feats of legerdemain “stories are still told, with a true sense of awe, by some of the world’s greatest magicians.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 16, 2025
Today we discuss cliff-hangers, the Founding Fathers and legerdemain.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 6, 2024
The filmmakers indulge in some legerdemain, having the real-life participants recount the events as if certain facts were not already in the open at the time of the interviews.
From New York Times • Feb. 8, 2024
He amazed everyone with his feats of legerdemain.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
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.
