Magic Tricks Terminology

noun the act of directing someone away from the correct path or direction

• The magician used misdirection to deceive the audience.
• She tried to use misdirection to avoid answering the question.
• The con artist pulled off the scam with some clever misdirection.
• His misdirection of blame onto others only caused more problems.

noun a person's facial expression showing no emotion or amusement

adjective having a serious or composed expression on the face

• Despite the shocking news, he maintained a straight face during the meeting.
• I couldn't keep a straight face when she told that joke.
• He was trying to act cool, but he couldn't hold a straight face.
• She told such a ridiculous story that I couldn't help but burst out laughing, unable to keep a straight face.

noun a person, place, thing, or idea

verb a word used to describe an action, state, or occurrence

preposition a word used before a noun or pronoun to show its relationship with other words in a sentence

article a word that is used with a noun to specify grammatical definiteness of the noun

• The magician's ability to turn the trick left the audience in awe.
• I bet he can turn the trick and impress everyone at the party.
• She's got the skills to turn the trick like no one else.
• His quick thinking helped him turn the trick and win the negotiation.