séance

sé·ance  (säns, -äs)

n.

1. A meeting of people to receive spiritualistic messages.

2. A meeting, session, or sitting, as of a learned or legislative body.

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[French, a sitting, from Old French seoir, to sit, from Latin sedre; see sed- in Indo-European roots.]

Word History: The origins of séance are surprisingly mundane, given the mysterious atmosphere associated with the word. It comes from French séance, "seat, session," from Old French seoir, "to sit." In French as in English the word came to be used specifically for a meeting of people to receive spiritualistic messages (a sense first recorded in English in 1845), but earlier in French and English the word had been used for meetings more generally. One can, after all, do many things while seated. Certainly the second recorded use of the word in English in 1803 does not promise the frisson of an encounter with the spirit world: "your séances . . . which I have a shrewd suspicion must be something dull." Perhaps the writer was referring to the meetings of a legislature or learned society, which sometimes put attendees to sleep rather than into a trance.

Translations

séance

n → spiritistische Sitzung, Séance f

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séance

n séance [ˈseiaːns]

a meeting of people trying to obtain messages from the spirits of dead people She claims to have spoken to Napoleon at a séance. séance جَلْسَة إسْتِحْضار الأرواح спиритически сеанс seance seance spritistische Sitzung συγκέντρωση για το κάλεσμα πνευμάτων sesión de espiritismo seanss جلسه احضار روح spiritistinen istunto séance de spiritisme סְייָאנְס सभा, बैठक seasa, prizivanje duhova szeánsz orang yang sudah meninggal miðilsfundur seduta spiritica 降霊術の会 강신술 spiritizmo seansas spiritisma seanss pemujaan roh seance seanse seans spirytystyczny sessão espírita şedinţă de spiritism спиритический сеанс seansa seansa seansa seans การชุมนุมเพื่อติดต่อกับวิญญาณ seans, ruh çağırma toplantısı 降神會(試圖與鬼神通話的聚會) спіритичний сеанс روحوں سے ملاقات کی محفل buổi gọi hồn 降神会