magician
Americannoun
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an entertainer who is skilled in producing illusion by sleight of hand, deceptive devices, etc.; conjurer.
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a person who is skilled in magic; sorcerer.
- Synonyms:
- wizard, enchanter, necromancer
noun
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another term for conjuror
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a person who practises magic
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a person who has extraordinary skill, influence, or qualities
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of magician
1350–1400; magic + -ian; replacing Middle English magicien < Middle French
Explanation
A magician does magic tricks. You might hire a magician to pull rabbits out of hats and do card tricks at your next birthday party. A performer whose specialty is sleight-of-hand and other illusions is one kind of magician. Another magician is the kind who makes real magic, casting spells and summoning spirits. More people believe in the first kind of magician — who is simply pretending to do magic — than the second. The word stems from the Old French magiciien, "magician or sorcerer," which is rooted in the Greek word for "magical," magikos.
Vocabulary lists containing magician
2015 National Spelling Bee Words
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Magical Vocabulary
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -an
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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.
See Examples For:
Trading mystery for certainty, this exhibition transforms Klee from sorcerer and magician into just another self-referential sociopolitical artist.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
Teenage magician Rafferty Coope, from Hampshire, came fifth after also making it to the last round.
From BBC ● May 31, 2026
It’s all just bravado and illusion in a show where the magician has no bunnies left to pull from his top hat.
From Salon ● May 28, 2026
Melies, a theatrical showman and magician, attended that screening and was inspired to make films of his own.
From Barron's ● Apr. 13, 2026
Is this what it means to be a magician?
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
More than two dozen acts—comedians, musicians, mentalists, magicians, dancers and jugglers—had 10 minutes each to prove themselves, which sounds harsh until you consider what cruise-ship audiences are like.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
Like Victor Frankenstein, who diligently selects body parts from corpses to stitch together his humanoid creation, the Mexican director carefully assembled his troupe of movie magicians.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2026
This time out, the original Four Horsemen -- who first appeared on screen in 2013 -- are joined by three younger magicians: Ariana Greenblatt, Dominic Sessa and Justice Smith.
From Barron's ● Nov. 16, 2025
At one point all of the magicians spontaneously do a show for one another, each of them taking part in a can-you-top-this series of illusions strung as close together as popcorn on a string.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 13, 2025
“We felt it first. She went to the magicians to warn them. Glerk!”
From "The Girl Who Drank the Moon" by Kelly Barnhill
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.
