voodoo Hear it!

voodoo Definition

voo·doo (vo̵̅o̅do̵̅o̅′)

noun pl. -·doos′

  1. a religion of the West Indies, esp. Haiti, based on beliefs and practices of African and Roman Catholic origin, and noted for its interest in sorcery, charms, and fetishes
  2. a person who practices voodoo
  3. a voodoo charm, fetish, curse, etc.

Etymology: Creole Fr, of WAfr orig., as in Ewe (Dahomey and Togo) vodu, fetish, demon

adjective

  1. of voodoos or voodooism
  2. Informal claimed or reputed to provide an ingenious or seemingly magical solution to a problem, but in reality of little value, effectiveness, etc. voodoo economics, voodoo diet plans

transitive verb

to affect by voodoo magic

voodoo Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • do: Then you could go straight into something like 6 Underground as the main theme... " I aint done no voodoo in years!
  • use: Or are you planning to use voodoo on him, too?
  • practice: A man who practices voodoo leads a ship's mutinous crew.
  • perform: They then perform some image manipulation voodoo on it and return you a PDF via email.

Adjective modifier

  • mystical: Presumably all of this is meant to enlighten the listener via the mystical voodoo telepathic power of the CD in a stereo.
  • it�s: And we collected up the things we liked, and the things we didn´t like, like this is evidence, like it´s voodoo.
  • African: The plot is utter bunk: supernatural forces possess a young woman when she and her archeologist boyfriend dabble in African voodoo.
  • little: Perhaps there are those who prefer their Obstetrics with a little voodoo.

Modifies a noun

  • priestess: Early in the 20th century, a powerful voodoo priestess followed her guiding spirit from New Orleans to a small town in Washington State.
  • doll: Well what better way than by making some small voodoo dolls of people you hate out of dough.
  • curse: Her employers allegedly threaten her with voodoo curses to keep her under control.
  • ritual: Coffins are often opened by grave robbers who steal bones which are believed to be powerful in voodoo rituals to ward off an enemy.
  • priest: Voodoo priests in London have been linked with ritual murders.
  • economics: These people will the property market down with voodoo economics, like the new age cult members they are.

Noun used with modifier

  • blue: You can read more about the blues voodoo on the interviews page.

Browse dictionary entries near voodoo

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