English Explanatory Dictionary

cantrip

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A spell or incantation; a trifling magic trick.
  2. A wilful piece of trickery or mischief.
  3. A minor spell, typically one that can be cast without preparation.

Pronunciation

/ˈkæntɹɪp/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-NaomiAmethyst-cantrip.wav

Word forms

cantrip cantrips cantrap cantrup cantraip

Etymology

From Middle Scots cantrip, cantrap (“a magic charm; a trick”). Further origin obscure, but likely a corruption of Scottish Gaelic canntaireachd (identical to Irish cantaireacht), referring to a system of musical notation consisting of a series of otherwise meaningless syllables memorised by pipers in learning their tunes; this was then used similarly to abracadabra. Regardless of details, ultimately derived from Latin cantō (“to sing, chant, play an instrument”).

Synonyms

enchantment hex spell cantrip chantment charm craft dwimmer incantation magic magic spell makutu mojo obeah pishogue rune spellword wanga

Related words

spellwork
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
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