- the act of invoking or calling upon some agent for assistance
- a prayer asking God for help, forgiveness, etc, esp as part of a religious service
- an appeal for inspiration and guidance from a Muse or deity at the beginning of a poem
- the act of summoning a spirit or demon from another world by ritual incantation or magic
- the incantation used in this act
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
in•vo•ca•tion /ˌɪnvəˈkeɪʃən/USA pronunciation
n.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- [uncountable] the act of praying to or calling upon a god, spirit, etc., for aid, protection, inspiration, or the like.
- [countable] a prayer invoking God's presence, said at the beginning of a ceremony or public occasion.
in•vo•ca•tion
(in′və kā′shən),USA pronunciation n.
in•voc•a•to•ry
(in vok′ə tôr′ē, -tōr′ē),USA pronunciation adj.
- the act of invoking or calling upon a deity, spirit, etc., for aid, protection, inspiration, or the like; supplication.
- any petitioning or supplication for help or aid.
- a form of prayer invoking God's presence, esp. one said at the beginning of a religious service or public ceremony.
- an entreaty for aid and guidance from a Muse, deity, etc., at the beginning of an epic or epiclike poem.
- the act of calling upon a spirit by incantation.
- the magic formula used to conjure up a spirit;
incantation. - the act of calling upon or referring to something, as a concept or document, for support and justification in a particular circumstance.
- the enforcing or use of a legal or moral precept or right.
- Latin invocātiōn- (stem of invocātiō). See invocate, -ion
- Middle English invocacio(u)n 1325–75
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
invocation /ˌɪnvəˈkeɪʃən/ n
'invocation' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
benediction
- Kyrie eleison
- O
- paean
- appeal
- chaplain
- conjuration
- conjure
- dulia
- maranatha
- ye