magic
noun · adjective · verb
Simple meaning
Special powers used to do impossible things, or trickery
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
majikSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈmædʒɪk
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
entertainment
Any art that invokes supernatural powers
entertainment
The art or practice of performing conjuring tricks and illusions to give the appearance of supernatural phenomena or powers.
The application of rituals or actions, especially those based on occult knowledge, to subdue or manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces in order to have some benefit from them.
Something producing successful and remarkable results, especially when not fully understood; an enchanting quality; exceptional skill.
countable
One such conjuring trick or illusion.
The supernatural forces which are drawn on in such a ritual.
adjective
Producing extraordinary results, as though through the use of magic.
Having supernatural talents, properties or qualities attributed to magic.
Pertaining to conjuring tricks or illusions performed for entertainment etc.
colloquial
Great; excellent.
verb
transitive
To produce, transform (something), (as if) by magic.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Any art that invokes supernatural powers
Used this way, magic is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use magic
- “The magician performed an amazing magic trick with a deck of cards.”noun
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.