ouija means A board, having letters of the alphabet and the words yes and no; used with a planchette during a seance to "communicate" with spirits. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 86 out of 100.
ouija is pronounced /ˈwiːd͡ʒə/.
Why “ouija” is a great word
OUIJA — [Noun] A board printed with letters, numbers, and the words 'yes' and 'no', used with a planchette to allegedly spell out messages from the spirit world. The name was taken from a word spelled out by the board itself when asked to identify itself in 1890, purportedly inspired by the name of a woman (possibly Ouida) in a painting; the popular folk etymology from French oui ('yes') and German ja ('yes') is incorrect. Unlike a "seance" (the encompassing ritual) or a "planchette" (the gliding instrument), the Ouija is the mute oracle—the entire apparatus of supposed communion. It is the grain of cheap pressboard under trembling fingertips, the stuttering slide of the heart-shaped pointer, and the definitive clunk on "goodbye"—a manufactured toy that transforms the parlor into a liminal space where every twitch becomes a message from the void.
noun
- A board, having letters of the alphabet and the words yes and no; used with a planchette during a seance to "communicate" with spirits.
- The use of such a board to attempt to communicate with spirits.“Soon after the departure of my brother to the better land, our spirit-band informed us very plainly through "Ouija," that it was our duty to remove to Boston in order that our children might have better educational facilities, and be admitted to the "musical swim" of the "Hub of the Universe."”