exorcism

noun

Definition of exorcismnext
as in witchcraft

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of exorcism Religious leaders may use prayer, pastoral counseling, and even exorcism as conversion practices. — Britannica Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 June 2026 Unlike contemporaries such as Nirvana, a punk band that wanted to shred the patriarchal rock hegemony of the ’80s, and Pearl Jam, which functioned as an exorcism for the soul night in and night out, Corgan never hid his rock star ambitions. — David Harris, SPIN, 2 June 2026 In my case, a boy named Ben is forced to participate in a Buddhist exorcism to remove the feminine spirit from his body. — Literary Hub, 7 May 2026 People online were jokingly musing about ghosts being inside the LLMs or that the AI needed an exorcism. — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 7 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for exorcism
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exorcism
  1. witchcraft
  2. sorcery
  3. necromancy
  4. divination
  5. wizardry
  6. witchery
  7. magic
  8. conjuring
Noun
  • Helen’s famous face has been disfigured, presumably by her angry husband, Menelaus; the sorceress Circe uses her witchcraft in self-defense, seemingly as a result of traumatic encounters with men.
    — Caroline Mimbs Nyce, New Yorker, 17 July 2026
  • The film also stars Anne Hathaway as Odysseus’ wife, Penelope; Tom Holland as their son, Telemachus; Pattinson as the Ithacan suitor, Antinous; Zendaya as goddess of wisdom, Athena; and Charlize Theron as goddess of witchcraft, Circe.
    — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 16 July 2026
Definition of witchcraft
Noun
  • These are some of man's most sorcery-like achievements, providing materials with excellent engineering properties.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 6 July 2026
  • Come to Eternia, the mythical home of flying dragon-like creatures, and swords, and sorcery, and spaceships — really, all the stuff a 12-year-old science fiction fanatic loves.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 4 June 2026
Definition of sorcery
Noun
  • The movie, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary on May 3, showed us how to use our magic and morals to decide whether to embrace necromancy and the occult.
    — Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 3 May 2026
  • Hedva’s practice cooks magic, necromancy, and divination together with mystical states of fury and ecstasy, and political states of solidarity and disintegration.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Jan. 2026
Definition of necromancy
Noun
  • Similar motives may be powering the fast-growing market for divination, astrology and tarot reading apps.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 8 July 2026
  • The second part centers on tarot as a tool of divination and creative inspiration, beginning with the iconic 1909 Rider-Waite-Smith deck and moving on to art works from the twentieth century into the present day.
    — Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 May 2026
Definition of divination
Noun
  • By some architectural wizardry of concrete and glass the pictures inside stand to attention, as if they, too, are suspended in time and space—a collection that faces in one direction, in orderly fashion, like the Terracotta Army.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 July 2026
  • Anyway, Will Venable has my imaginary vote, though Mike Vasil's wizardry might be the bigger reason why the White Sox are rolling.
    — Andy McCullough, New York Times, 17 July 2026
Definition of wizardry
Noun
  • Enter kitchen witchery, a practice rooted in modern witchcraft that blends intention, ritual, and everyday cooking.
    — Cori Sears, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Oct. 2025
  • Ravn beautifully brings us inside these circles of care, which to many outsiders might have seemed as strange as witchery.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Sep. 2025
Definition of witchery
Noun
  • Caribenya’s magic, and Pimienta’s real achievement, is a record that beautifully slips through your fingers.
    — Maria Nenet Barrios, Pitchfork, 21 July 2026
  • The fourth star and a fairytale send off for Lionel Messi earned through lots of grit, fighting spirit and a bit of magic evaporated into the East Rutherford, New Jersey, air.
    — Patrick Sung Cuadrado, CNN Money, 20 July 2026
Definition of magic
Noun
  • Sure, the Oscar-winning makeup helps transform the actor into Cheney, but the voice and petulance are all Bale, whose conjuring of this scoundrel ought to trigger PTSD for anyone who survived the Dubya years.
    — Tim Grierson, Vulture, 7 Mar. 2026
  • In Pilkington’s conjuring, liberalism was a potent ideology that arose against monarchy and aristocracy and sought to rationalize social and political relationships.
    — Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2025
Definition of conjuring

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exorcising
exorcism
exorcisms
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Cite this Entry

“Exorcism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exorcism. Accessed 25 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on exorcism

Nglish: Translation of exorcism for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about exorcism

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