evocation

noun

evo·​ca·​tion ˌē-vō-ˈkā-shən How to pronounce evocation (audio)
ˌe-və-
1
: the act or fact of evoking : summoning: such as
a
: the summoning of a spirit
b
: imaginative recreation
an evocation of the past
2
evocator noun

Examples of evocation in a Sentence

rich evocations of the sights, sounds, and smells of the carnival the evocation of a simpler time
Recent Examples on the Web The film, which features footage from Demy’s own homemade student films, is one of the most detailed evocations of the physical activity of filmmaking, and one of the great stories about growing up. Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2024 The remaining nominees — knockouts of style and mood — are craftier evocations, digging into spaces where memories are vivid yet elusive. Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2024 Husband: 70 mentions Agent: 48 mentions * only 32 evocations of God refer to the divine figure Dads, much like husbands, appear in fewer speeches at 219. David Wharton, Los Angeles Times, 8 Mar. 2024 But as Cotillard finds her literal voice, these self-conscious details of process fall away, and the actor’s evocation of Carole’s mounting psychic pain turns immersive and entirely upsetting. Guy Lodge, Variety, 6 Mar. 2024 The two meet while Carol is Christmas shopping, but what really makes the film holiday fare is its stylish evocation of a cold, bygone Manhattan where Martinis were considered a lunch food and women still wore driving gloves. The New Yorker, 8 Dec. 2023 His explorations of identity and self-definition, of the importance of the oral tradition in literature, and of his Kiowa heritage were interwoven with reverent evocations of landscape in passages of soaring lyrical prose. John Motyka, New York Times, 29 Jan. 2024 But Claudel’s oeuvre, especially its sensitive and moving evocation of women’s interior lives, is not so easily dismissed. Farah Peterson, The Atlantic, 14 Dec. 2023 His evocation of Lagos is all the more powerful for arriving as an interruption of Tunde’s narrative—which resumes in the first person, as if the cascade of anonymous voices had restored his own. Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'evocation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Latin evocation-, evocatio, from evocare

First Known Use

1633, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of evocation was in 1633

Dictionary Entries Near evocation

Cite this Entry

“Evocation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/evocation. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

evocation

noun
evo·​ca·​tion ˌē-vō-ˈkā-shən How to pronounce evocation (audio)
ˌev-ə-
: an act or instance of evoking

Medical Definition

evocation

noun
evo·​ca·​tion ˌē-vō-ˈkā-shən How to pronounce evocation (audio) ˌev-ə- How to pronounce evocation (audio)
: induction sense 3b
specifically : initiation of development of a primary embryonic axis

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