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  1. noun. leg· er· de· main ˌle-jər-də-ˈmān. Synonyms of legerdemain. 1. : sleight of hand. displays legerdemain with cards and coins. 2. : a display of skill or adroitness. a remarkable piece of diplomatic legerdemain Anthony West.

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  3. LEGERDEMAIN definition: 1. skilful hiding of the truth in order to trick people: 2. skilful tricks done as part of a…. Learn more.

  4. noun. sleight of hand. trickery; deception. any artful trick. legerdemain. / ˌlɛdʒədəˈmeɪn / noun. another name for sleight of hand. cunning deception or trickery.

  5. Legerdemain can be used literally to describe a magic trick, or figuratively to describe some other kind of trickery or deceit. If you and some friends cook up a scheme that involves telling complicated lies so that you can stay out all night, you are guilty of legerdemain.

    • Etymology
    • Pronunciation
    • Noun

    From Middle English legerdemeyn, lechardemane, from Old French léger de main (literally “light of hand”), a phrase that meant “dexterous, skillful at fooling others (especially through sleights of hand”), which was however treated as a noun when it was borrowed by late Middle English. The Modern French descendant léger de mainof the Old French phra...

    (UK) IPA(key): /ˌlɛd͡ʒ.ə.dɨˈmeɪn/
    (US) IPA(key): /ˈlɛd͡ʒ.əɹ.dəˌmeɪn/
    Hyphenation: leg‧er‧de‧main

    legerdemain (usually uncountable, plural legerdemains) 1. Sleight of hand; "magic" trickery. 1.1. 1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book V, Canto IX”, in The Faerie Queene.[…], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC: 1.1.1. For he in slights and jugling feates did flow, / And of legierdemaynethe mysteries did know. 1.2. 2021 March 8, Michael C....

  6. What does the word legerdemain mean? There are six meanings listed in OED's entry for the word legerdemain , one of which is labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

  7. noun. Word origin. [1400–50; late ME legerdemeyn, lygarde de mayne ‹ MF: lit., light of hand] legerdemain in British English. (ˌlɛdʒədəˈmeɪn ) noun. 1. another name for sleight of hand. 2. cunning deception or trickery. Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers. Derived forms.

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