magical

magical
magic, magical
The two words compete with one another in all the main senses, ‘relating to magic’, ‘produced by or as if by magic’, and ‘wonderful’, although magic is used exclusively in certain fixed expressions such as magic lantern and magic square. When used in its descriptive role, magic still behaves more like a noun than an adjective; otherwise, magic and magical are largely interchangeable, however close or remote the connection with magic and related phenomena:

• …In the evenings, when the afterglow makes the whole valley magic —J. Ashe, 1993

• She had not been kissed for over two years and it was magical —P. Wilson, 1993

• It's a magically beautiful autumn night —T. Boucher, 2004.

In the second half of the 20c, magic came to be used informally both in attributive position (before a noun) and by itself as a term of enthusiastic approval (We had a magic time / It's magic!).

Modern English usage. 2014.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Magical — est un spectacle nocture qui passe actuellement au parc Disneyland. Ce document provient de « Magical » …   Wikipédia en Français

  • magical — index mysterious, uncanny Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • magical — англ. [мэ/джикл] mágico ит. [ма/джико] magique фр. [мажи/к] волшебный, магический …   Словарь иностранных музыкальных терминов

  • magical — (adj.) 1550s, from MAGIC (Cf. magic) (n.) + AL (Cf. al) (1). Related: Magically …   Etymology dictionary

  • magical — [maj′i kəl] adj. MAGIC (esp. adj. 2) magically adv …   English World dictionary

  • Magical — Magic Mag ic, Magical Mag ic*al, a. [L. magicus, Gr. ?, fr. ?: cf. F. magique. See {Magi}.] 1. Pertaining to the hidden wisdom supposed to be possessed by the Magi; relating to the occult powers of nature, and the producing of effects by their… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • magical — [[t]mæ̱ʤɪk(ə)l[/t]] 1) N UNCOUNT Something that is magical seems to use magic or to be able to produce magic. ...the story of Sin Sin, a little boy who has magical powers. Derived words: magically [[t]mæ̱ʤɪkli[/t]] ADV ADV with v ...the story of… …   English dictionary

  • magical — adj. VERBS ▪ be ▪ find sth ADVERB ▪ absolutely, simply, truly, very ▪ a trul …   Collocations dictionary

  • magical — adjective 1) magical powers Syn: supernatural, magic, mystical, other worldly 2) the news had a magical effect Syn: extraordinary, remarkable, incredible, amazing, astonishing, astounding …   Synonyms and antonyms dictionary

  • magical — magically, adv. /maj i keuhl/, adj. 1. produced by or as if by magic: The change in the appearance of the room was magical. 2. mysteriously enchanting: a magical night. 3. of or pertaining to magic. [1545 55; MAGIC + AL1] * * * …   Universalium

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