'Hocus-pocus' definitions:
Definition of 'hocus-pocus'
(from WordNet)
noun
Verbal misrepresentation intended to take advantage of you in some way [syn: trickery, hocus-pocus, slickness, hanky panky, jiggery-pokery, skulduggery, skullduggery]
Definition of 'Hocus-pocus'
From: GCIDE
- Hocus-pocus \Ho"cus-po"cus\, n. [Prob. invented by jugglers in imitation of Latin. Cf. Hoax, Hocus.]
- 1. A term used by magicians or conjurers in pretended incantations. [1913 Webster]
- 2. A juggler or trickster. [Archaic] --Sir T. Herbert. [1913 Webster]
- 3. A magician's trick; a cheat; nonsense. --Hudibras. [1913 Webster]
- 4. Obfuscating talk or elaborate but meaningless activity intended to hide a deception or to obscure what is actually happening; verbal misrepresentation intended to take advantage of you in some way.
- Syn: trickery, slickness, hanky panky, jiggery-pokery, skulduggery, skullduggery. [WordNet 1.5 +PJC]
Definition of 'Hocus-pocus'
From: GCIDE
- Hocus-pocus \Ho"cus-po"cus\, v. t. To cheat. [Colloq.] --L'Estrange. [1913 Webster]
Synonyms of 'hocus-pocus'
From: Moby Thesaurus
- abracadabra,
- artifice,
- cheat,
- chicanery,
- con game,
- conjuring,
- deceit,
- deception,
- duplicity,
- flimflam,
- gibberish,
- hanky-panky,
- hoax,
- humbug,
- incantation,
- jiggery-pokery,
- jugglery,
- legerdemain,
- magic,
- mischief,
- mumbo-jumbo,
- nonsense,
- prestidigitation,
- rigmarole,
- sleight of hand,
- swindle,
- trick,
- trickery