Standard Lemma guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
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noun
Sleight of hand; "magic" trickery.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: uncountable, usually
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: prestidigitation, sleight of hand, conjuration, conjuring, dweomercraft, hocus-pocus, illusionism, jugglery, legerdemain, magic, prestigiation
Antonyms: none provided
noun
A show of skill or deceitful ability.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: broadly, uncountable, usually
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: jugglery, sleight of hand, deception, imposition, hype, deceit, dupery, fiddle, fetch, hocus-pocus, legerdemain, list, mislead, prestidigitation, Punic faith, rinky-dink, ruse, subterfuge, swack, trickery
Antonyms: none provided
noun
an illusory feat; considered magical by naive observers
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: magic trick, conjuring trick, trick, magic, conjuration, thaumaturgy, illusion, deception
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: performance
Narrower terms: card trick, prestidigitation, sleight of hand
History
From Middle English legerdemeyn, lechardemane, from Old French léger de main (literally “light of hand”), a phrase that meant “dexterous, skillful at fooling others (especially through sleights of hand)”, which was however treated as a noun when it was borrowed by late Middle English. The Modern French descendant léger de main of the Old French phrase is archaic but still sometimes found in older literature and simply means “skillful” without any connotation of sleight of hand.
Across languages
9 source translations are retained for this English entry.
