imprecation
Imprecation (noun) means the act of calling down evil or misfortune upon someone. Example: “The old sailor's imprecation against the captain was overheard by the whole crew.”
How to use imprecation
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA curse, or the act of cursing someone by wishing harm on them.
This is a formal or literary word, more likely to appear in writing than in casual conversation.
Link it to the everyday word curse, since an imprecation is essentially a curse called down on someone.
Trace the full origin ↓Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
The old sailor's _____ against the captain was overheard by the whole crew.
Etymology
The word is a learned borrowing from Latin imprecatio, meaning the calling down of curses. This noun is built from the verb imprecor, meaning to call down or invoke something upon someone.
