conjure man
- noun
- /ˈkɒndʒər mæn/
- Literature
:
mago
- In his village, the conjure man was known for healing ailments with herbal remedies.
Examples
-
He was a conjure man.
-
Saunders's approach to the music of the spiritual finds its analogy in the work of the African juju or conjure man who takes the raw elements of the earth, separates them from their context, endows them with certain symbolic meaning, and thereby works spiritual magic.
Academic text (1992) -
The conjure man performed a ritual to communicate with the spirits and seek guidance.
-
People often visited the conjure man to ask for luck and protection in their lives.
Synonyms
260
4.6
A person who uses magic to do powerful or strange things
245
3.6
A person who does tricks that look like magic or who people think has real powers
108
8.6
A man who uses magic and is thought to work with evil spirits
107
7.9
A person who uses magic to make things happen
43
9.5
A person who uses magic in stories or myths
41
9.9
A person in stories who can use magic to help or harm others
8
9.9
A person who uses magic to talk to or bring dead people back to life
2
8.7
A person who uses magic to change people or things
1
8.6
A person who claims to have magic powers to help or harm people
1
9.0
A person who uses magic and rituals that people think have real powers
A person who practices folk magic, casting spells or curses
A man people think can use magic
A person who uses magic to change things
A wise person who reads the stars and uses magic to tell the future
How Supernatural
- Literature
107
7.9
18
8.2
- Literature
3
9.9
101
3.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly and compositionally derived from 'conjure' (to summon or do magic) + 'man' (a male person), so a learner who knows both words can infer 'a man who conjures or practices magic'. This follows a common English pattern (agent noun phrasing like 'X man' or 'man who Xs') and is therefore readily understandable to a B1 learner, despite minor cultural-specific connotations.
Etymology
Conjure man may come from old folk stories about a conjure, a person who calls spirits, and a man who uses herbs and simple spells to help people. That's why the name means 'a man who practices folk magic or healing'.