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Magic Marker

Magic Marker

8 3.2
A thick felt-tip pen used for writing or drawing on many surfaces
  • noun
  • /ˈmædʒɪk ˈmɑrkər/
translation icon : rotulador
  • Oh, ah, that is my special Magic Marker.
  • a black Magic Marker
  • a red Magic Marker
  • a blue Magic Marker

We had overhead transparencies and magic markers and blackboards or whiteboards.

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Examples

  • Tyler colored on them with Magic Marker.

  • We're not allowed to have Magic Markers.

  • All right, what I need is a big, fat magic marker.

  • Wouldn't it be easier to use a Magic Marker?

  • Take a Magic Marker, cross out the word "objectivity."

  • Joey and his pals take turns drawing on a cafeteria tray with a magic marker.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Using a thick Magic Marker, I drew up a list, with timelines, of all my current assignments.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Rackham easily found the Magic Marker, held in place on the bulkhead with Velcro.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • Rummaging through the drawers, her fingers seized a black Magic Marker, the one she had used to label the moving crates.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Could you bring me a magic marker to finish the poster?

Synonyms

marker
vsMagic Marker
57 1.1

A pen with a thick tip used to make bold marks

is a brand name often used to refer to these thick coloured pens
Sharpie
vsMagic Marker
3 2.8

A permanent marker pen used to write on many surfaces

is a brand name used for ordinary thick coloured pens rather than permanent ones
felt tip
vsMagic Marker
2 3.0

A pen with a soft cloth tip used for drawing or coloring

is a brand name used informally for thick coloured pens
felt-tip pen
vsMagic Marker
1 2.1

A pen with a soft felt tip for writing or drawing

is a brand name often used to mean any thick coloured pen
felt-tipped pen
vsMagic Marker
1 3.0

A tool for writing or drawing with a soft tip that makes bold lines

is a brand name commonly used to mean thick coloured pens

Surface Forms

Magic Marker singular
Magic Markers plural

Morphology

Magic + marker

The head noun 'marker' clearly signals a writing implement, so a B1 learner who knows both words will likely infer this refers to a kind of marker. However, 'Magic' is a figurative/brand modifier (suggesting 'special' or a trademark) and the specific status as a brand name or genericized product is not fully predictable from the parts, making the expression only partially transparent.

Etymology

Magic Marker started as a brand name meant to show that the pen's bright, strong ink seemed like magic, because it made bold lines on many surfaces. So people began to use the name for any thick felt-tip marker, and today it means 'a thick colored felt-tip pen'.