obeah

[ oh-bee-uh ]

/ ˈoʊ bi ə /

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noun

a form of belief involving sorcery, practiced in parts of the West Indies, South America, the southern U.S., and Africa.

a fetish or charm used in practicing obeah.

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Also obi.

Origin of obeah

1750–60; compare Gullah, Jamaican English, Guyanan English, Sranan óbia magic, charm; < a West African language, though precise source unclear; compare Twi ɔ-bayifó sorcerer (compound with -fo person), Igbo díbìà folk healer (compound with dí- expert in)

Words nearby obeah

obduce, obduction, obduracy, obdurate, O.B.E., obeah, O beautiful for spacious skies, obeche, obedience, obedience training, obedience trial

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use obeah in a sentence

The same missionary told me that in Sierra Leone, also, Obeah and poisoning go hand in hand.
At Last|Charles Kingsley
But the pièce de résistance of the day was to be the examination and probable committal of the Obeah-man of those parts.
At Last|Charles Kingsley
That spirit belongs to the Obeah, or Fêtish-man; and he puts it, by magic ceremonies, into any object which he chooses.
At Last|Charles Kingsley
The ceiba is the sacred tree of the negro, the temple of Jumbi, the proper house of Obeah.
With the World's Great Travellers, Volume 2|Various

The rumor got about that Maumee Niña had become an Obeah woman,—a voodoo worker, a witch.
Myths & Legends of our New Possessions & Protectorate|Charles M. Skinner

British Dictionary definitions for obeah

obeah

/ (ˈəʊbɪə) /

noun

another word for obi 2

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

obeah

Origin of obeah

Words nearby obeah

Words related to obeah

How to use obeah in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for obeah