All words

legerdemain

Meaning

Skillful manual dexterity in performing illusions or trickery, often involving misdirection and deception.

Examples by difficulty

Basic: Simple, everyday vocabulary — the easiest to read.

As the magician moved his hands, the coin vanished from sight. The children gasped, amazed at his quick legerdemain. His sleight of hand made it seem like the coin had never been there at all, leaving everyone to wonder how he did it.

I checked my pocket again. My wallet was gone. The man who bumped into me must have been a master of legerdemain. I never felt a thing, just a quick brush of his hand against my coat, and now I was left with nothing.

The magician moved his fingers so fast I couldn't follow them. One second the coin was there, the next it had vanished. My little brother gasped at the legerdemain, convinced it was real magic. I knew it was just quick hand movements, but I couldn't spot the trick.

During the birthday party, Uncle Joe tried to impress the kids with his amazing legerdemain, but instead of pulling a rabbit out of his hat, he accidentally launched his toupee across the room. The children cheered, thinking this silly sleight of hand was the funniest magic trick ever.

My toddler’s act of legerdemain was breathtaking. He distracted me by pointing at a squirrel with one chubby hand, while his other hand, moving with impossible speed, snatched the last donut from the box. He then stared at me with an innocent, frosting-covered face.

Normal: Standard, everyday language.

The magician's legerdemain was truly impressive, as he made a coin disappear from one hand and reappear in the other without anyone noticing the switch. The audience gasped in amazement at his skillful sleight of hand.

The street magician's audience was enthralled by his incredible legerdemain. With a flick of his wrist, a coin vanished into thin air, only to reappear behind his ear. The crowd gasped in astonishment, marveling at the illusions he effortlessly created with his quick and deceptive hand movements.

In the dimly lit room, the magician's legerdemain was on full display as he effortlessly made coins disappear and reappear in the palms of his hands. The audience gasped in amazement at the seemingly impossible feats of magic unfolding before their eyes. But as the show went on, a sense of unease crept over the crowd. They began to realize that the magician's tricks were not just illusions, but something far more sinister. With a flick of his wrist, he made a volunteer vanish into thin air, leaving behind nothing but a cloud of smoke and the stench of death.

The nimble figure's fingers danced across the table, a blur of motion. In their wake, cards vanished and reappeared, coins disappeared into thin air, and objects seemed to levitate. The audience gasped in astonishment, captivated by the sorcerer's legerdemain. They couldn't fathom the secrets behind his seemingly impossible feats.

In the village of Mistwood, whispers of a mysterious magician spread like wildfire. Children claimed he could make coins disappear with a flick of his wrist, performing acts of legerdemain that left audiences in awe. Some believed he possessed magical powers, while others suspected it was all just clever trickery. One day, a young girl named Elara decided to investigate for herself. She watched as the magician performed his illusions, his hands moving with such speed and precision that even she couldn't decipher his tricks. In the end, Elara realized that sometimes, the true magic lies in the art of legerdemain.

Advanced: Richer vocabulary that stretches an upper-level reader.

As I watched the magician on stage, I felt a rush of excitement as he moved his hands quickly. His skillful legerdemain left the audience amazed, because his sleight of hand made cards and coins disappear right before our eyes, leaving us to wonder how he could be so fast and clever.

He watched the gambler’s hands, convinced he was being cheated. The man’s legerdemain was perfect; cards seemed to switch places on their own. Despite his intense focus, the dealer’s quick movements were a complete blur, leaving him baffled and holding a losing hand once again.

The magician's fingers moved too quickly to follow as he made the coin vanish and reappear behind my ear. I watched his hands closely during his next trick, determined to catch the legerdemain, but once again he fooled me completely. My nephew begged him to reveal how he'd done it.

At Uncle Morty’s party, the magician’s legerdemain was so baffling that Aunt Gertie accused him of hiding cards up his sleeve, in his shoe, and possibly in his toupee. The children applauded wildly, certain he could use sleight of hand to make Brussels sprouts disappear from their plates.

The raccoon’s impressive legerdemain was on full display. With a swift flick of his tiny, dexterous paws, the masked bandit snatched my sandwich directly from my grasp, leaving behind only a single, indignant leaf as a bizarre calling card. The heist was over in an instant.

Challenging: Rare, high-register vocabulary for serious word lovers.

As the magician moved his hands with practiced legerdemain, the coin vanished before our eyes, leaving astonishment hanging in the room. His sleight of hand unsettled even the most skeptical among us, blurring the boundary between reality and illusion in a moment charged with disbelief.

The cardsharp’s hands were a blur of practiced legerdemain over the worn felt table. His facile movements were designed to bilk us, and I felt a hot surge of indignation as I realized the game was a complete sham, my good fortune suddenly nullified.

The street magician's fingers moved with practiced legerdemain, palming coins and producing them behind children's ears while their parents watched skeptically. His patter was incessant, designed to distract from the mechanical precision of his hands. When a businessman accused him of trickery, he smiled and held up both empty palms in mock surrender.

At the annual turkey-carving contest, Aunt Mildred’s legerdemain was so impressive that drumsticks vanished with Houdini-esque finesse, leaving onlookers befuddled and Uncle Harold clutching only a wishbone, convinced that sorcery, not mere sleight of hand, had spirited away his Thanksgiving dinner.

The corpulent raccoon, a veritable gourmand, executed a stunning act of legerdemain, purloining the buttery croissant from the dowager’s plate. So swift was the filch, she merely blamed the gin for her sudden and inexplicable pastry lacuna.

Difficulty

Challenging — Rare, high-register words for serious word lovers.

Appears in

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