Meanings
ouija1
plural ouijas
- countableuncountableAlternative letter-case form of Ouija.
Mediums — tipping tables — ouijas — all that sort of thing.
2005, Stephen Vincent Benet, The Beginning of Wisdom, page 268
Ouija2
plural Ouijas · alternative ouija
- countableA board, having letters of the alphabet and the words yes and no; used with a planchette during a seance to "communicate" with spirits.
Synonyms: Ouija board, spirit board, talking board
- uncountableThe use of such a board to attempt to communicate with spirits.
Soon after the departure of my brother to the better land, our spirit-band informed us very plainly through "Ouija," that it was our duty to remove to Boston in order that our children might have better educational facilities, and be admitted to the "musical swim" of the "Hub of the Universe."
1903, James Henry Foss, The Gentleman from Everywhere
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA board, having letters of the alphabet and the words yes and no; used with a planchette during a seance to "communicate" with spirits.
More synonyms by meaning
nouna board with the alphabet on it; used with a planchette to spell out supernatural messages
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
The popular belief that the word came from French oui (“yes”) + German ja (“yes”) is a misconception. The name is taken from a word spelled out on the board when it was asked to name itself by Helen Peters, sister-in-law of Kennard Company investor Elijah Bond. It is noted in personal letters that Ouija was the name of a woman in a painting above her head at the time, who it is speculated may have in fact been Ouida.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic وْيْجَا
- وْيْجَا (wyjā)board
Basque ouija
- ouijaboard
Catalan ouija
- ouijaboard
Danish ouija, ouija-bræt
- ouijaboard
- ouija-brætboard
- ånden i glassetboard
Dutch ouijabord
- ouijabordboard
Esperanto literumita tabulo
- literumita tabuloboard
Estonian ouija laud, ouija tahvel
- ouija laudboard
- ouija tahvelboard
Finnish ouija, Ouija-lauta
- ouijaboard
- Ouija-lautaboard
- spiritismiuse of board
French Ouija
- Ouijaboard
German Ouija, Ouija-Brett n Hexenbrett
- Ouijaboard
- Ouija-Brett n Hexenbrettboard
- Alphabettafelboard
- Seelenschreiberboard
Greek πίνακας Ouija, πίνακας πνευμάτων
- πίνακας Ouija (pínakas Ouija)board
- πίνακας πνευμάτων (pínakas pnevmáton)board
Icelandic andaglas
- andaglasboard
Italian ouija, tavola ouija
- ouijaboard
- tavola ouijaboard
Japanese ウィジャボード
- ウィジャボード (uija-bōdo)board
Latvian vīdža
- vīdžaboard
Lithuanian vidža lentelė
- vidža lentelėboard
Polish ouija
- ouijaboard
Portuguese ouija, tabuleiro ouija
- ouijaboard
- tabuleiro ouijaboard
Romanian ouija
- ouijaboard
Russian уиджа
- уиджа (uidža)board
Spanish güija, ouija
- güijaboard
- ouijaboard
Swedish ouija-bräda, anden i glaset
- ouija-brädaboard
- anden i glasetboard
Thai ผีถ้วยแก้ว
- ผีถ้วยแก้ว (pǐi-tûai-gɛ̂ɛo)board
Turkish ouija, cadı tahtası
- ouijaboard
- cadı tahtasıboard
Ukrainian віджа, віджі
- віджа (vidža)board
- віджі (vidži)board
Welsh bwrdd ouija
- bwrdd ouijaboard
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with ouija
All rhymes →Cite this entry
ouija. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ouija
“ouija.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ouija. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ouija,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ouija.
Source: ouija on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.