Hocuspocus vs Abracadabra - What's the difference?
hocuspocus | abracadabra |
A use of the mystical term ‘abracadabra’, supposed to work as part of a healing charm or a magical spell; any spell or incantation making use of the word.
* 2012 , Georgina Turner, The Guardian , 28 Aug 2012:
Mumbo-jumbo]]; obscure language or [[technicality, technicalities; jargon.
* 1971 , , Religion and the Decline of Magic , Folio Society 2012, p. 335:
As nouns the difference between hocuspocus and abracadabra
is that hocuspocus is an alternative spelling of lang=en while abracadabra is a use of the mystical term ‘abracadabra’, supposed to work as part of a healing charm or a magical spell; any spell or incantation making use of the word.As a verb hocuspocus
is to cheat.As an interjection abracadabra is
Used to indicate that a magic trick or other illusion has been performed.abracadabra
English
(wikipedia abracadabra)Noun
(en noun)- With a quiet bank holiday afternoon to fill, the Mill yesterday dug out the old magic kit, brushed the cobwebs off its top hat and practiced a few abracadabras .
- I don’t know all the theoretical abracadabra about how it works, I’m only its pilot.
- Astrology was not specifically banned in the statutes against witchcraft, but so long as its technicalities remained abracadabra to the lay public there was always a risk that the practitioner might find himself arrested for sorcery.