magic

[ maj-ik ]
/ ˈmædʒ ɪk /

noun

adjective

verb (used with object), mag·icked, mag·ick·ing.

to create, transform, move, etc., by or as if by magic: I magicked him into a medieval knight.

Origin of magic

1350–1400; Middle English magik(e) witchcraft < Late Latin magica, Latin magicē < Greek magikḗ, noun use of feminine of magikós. See Magus, -ic

SYNONYMS FOR magic

2 enchantment. Magic, necromancy, sorcery, witchcraft imply producing results through mysterious influences or unexplained powers. Magic may have glamorous and attractive connotations; the other terms suggest the harmful and sinister. Magic is an art employing some occult force of nature: A hundred years ago television would have seemed to be magic. Necromancy is an art of prediction based on alleged communication with the dead (it is called “the black art,” because Greek nekrós, dead, was confused with Latin niger, black): Necromancy led to violating graves. Sorcery, originally divination by casting lots, came to mean supernatural knowledge gained through the aid of evil spirits, and often used for evil ends: spells and charms used in sorcery. Witchcraft especially suggests a malign kind of magic, often used against innocent victims: Those accused of witchcraft were executed.

OTHER WORDS FROM magic

qua·si-mag·ic, adjective

Example sentences from the Web for magic

British Dictionary definitions for magic

magic
/ (ˈmædʒɪk) /

noun

adjective Also: magical

verb -ics, -icking or -icked (tr)

to transform or produce by or as if by magic
(foll by away) to cause to disappear by or as if by magic

Derived forms of magic

magical, adjective magically, adverb

Word Origin for magic

C14: via Old French magique, from Greek magikē witchcraft, from magos magus