obeah

[ oh-bee-uh ]

/ ˈoʊ bi ə /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR obeah ON THESAURUS.COM

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.

Nearby words

obduce, obduction, obduracy, obdurate, obe, obeah, obeche, obedience, obedience training, obedience trial, obedient

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)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for obeah

And with a formless roar of killing-rage, Stern swung on the obeah, with the rifle.
Darkness and Dawn|George Allan England
But already, with a chattering howl, the obeah was running forward.
Darkness and Dawn|George Allan England
Up he brought the automatic, till the bead lay fair upon the naked, muscular breast of the obeah.
Darkness and Dawn|George Allan England
It blights the lives of children, and it is one of the worst of fates to be “overlooked” by an Obeah man possessing it.
Myths & Legends of our New Possessions & Protectorate|Charles M. Skinner

Stern saw a little round bluish hole take shape in the obeah's ear, and red drops start.
Darkness and Dawn|George Allan England

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

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of obeah

Examples from the Web for obeah

British Dictionary definitions for obeah

obeah

noun