hoodoo · noun — A set of spiritual practices and traditions created and concealed from slave-owners by enslaved Africans in North America, based on traditional African beliefs. It carries an Arena rating of 1599, earned across 6 head-to-head judged battles.
Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, hoodoo ranks #957 of 17,142 for Scariest Words, #1,716 of 17,135 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #1,889 of 17,143 for Most Malleable Words, #2,417 of 17,114 for Most Storied Words.
hoodoo is pronounced /ˈhuːduː/.
Why “hoodoo” is a great word
A body of African-American folk-magic practices, or the supernatural bad luck it produces; to afflict with such misfortune. An alteration of the word 'voodoo', attested in American English by the mid-19th century. Unlike voodoo—a formalized syncretic religion with pantheons and rites—or a jinx—a playful hex for trivial woes—hoodoo is the quiet, pragmatic magic of the root and the crossroads. It is the whispered psalm over a candle, the sachet of herbs buried at a property line, the blue glass bottle hanging from a tree to trap evil spirits. It is the tangible attempt to shape an indifferent world when all other power is denied, and the quiet certainty that some doors, once opened, cannot be closed again.
❧ Essay by Lexicurio’s AI · definition, etymology & citations from published sources
Etymology
Apparently an alteration of voodoo.
noun
- A set of spiritual practices and traditions created and concealed from slave-owners by enslaved Africans in North America, based on traditional African beliefs.
- A practitioner of voodoo.
- Supernatural bad luck, or something or someone believed to bring bad luck.e.g.“The three men wondered whether they would find Colson at Taylor's Creek. They felt that a hoodoo hung over the place.” — 1931, Ion L. Idriess, Lasseter's Last Ride, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, page 60:
- A tall thin spire of rock that protrudes from the bottom of arid basins and badlands.
verb
- To jinx; to bring bad luck or misfortune to.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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