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🇩🇪German Source WordCode: DE

Voodoo

Pronunciation / Transliteration: voo-doo

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Voodoo/ˈvuː.duː/
nounadjectiveCEFR C1 (Advanced)Top #8500 frequency
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🇩🇪 Example Sentence in German:

"Voodoo ist eine synkretistische Religion mit westafrikanischen Wurzeln."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As noun
  1. 1

    A black religious cult involving witchcraft and spirit possession, practiced chiefly in Haiti, the Caribbean, and the southern United States.

    "Scholars study traditional Haitian voodoo as a complex syncretic religion deeply rooted in West African spiritual traditions."
  2. 2

    A mysterious, seemingly inexplicable force, method, or influence, often used informally to describe processes that feel magical or irrational.

    "The engineers had to rely on a bit of suspension voodoo to get the racecar to handle the sharp corners."
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Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from the Louisiana French and Haitian Creole word 'vodou', which ultimately traces back to the Fon language of West Africa, specifically meaning a sacred spirit, deity, or spiritual force. The term entered the English language in the late 19th century, frequently sensationalized in Western literature and media to describe folk magic, sorcery, and animistic religious practices originating from West African and Caribbean syncretism.

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