Link Centre Dictionary

prestidigitation

pres·ti·di·gitation

UK/ˌpɹɛstɪˌdɪd͡ʒɪˈteɪʃən/ US/ˌpɹɛstəˌdɪd͡ʒɪˈteɪʃən/ uncommon

noun

1.

manual dexterity in the execution of tricks

Synonyms

Origin

From French prestidigitation, from French preste (“nimble, quick”) + Latin digitus (“finger”) + French -ation (process suffix). The word has a different origin from prestige, even though this in the past has meant “delusion, illusion, trick”.

Related words

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.