name to conjure with

name to conjure with

1. A name that is important or well-known. There are definitely some names to conjure with at the upcoming industry conference!
2. An unusual or interesting name. Englebert Humperdinck is certainly a name to conjure with!
See also: conjure, name
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

a name to conjure with

mainly BRITISH
1. If you say that someone or something is a name to conjure with, you mean that they are very famous and important. Bugattis, Bentleys, Ferraris — motoring names to conjure with, and all part of a breath-taking display of classic cars. Doris Kearns Goodwin is not a name to conjure with in this country, but in the United States she is a star.
2. If you say that someone or something's name is a name to conjure with, you mean their name is very unusual or funny. Lily's sister, for instance, is Vera Cheeseman. Now there's a name to conjure with. Note: In this expression, the importance and influence associated with a person or thing are regarded as a kind of magical power which you can call on by using their name.
See also: conjure, name
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.

a name to conjure with

a person who is important within a particular sphere of activity.
The image here is of magically summoning a spirit to do your bidding by invoking a powerful name or using a spell.
1954 Iris Murdoch Under the Net His name, little known to the public, is one to conjure with in Hollywood.
See also: conjure, name
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

a name to ˈconjure with


1 the name of a well-known, very respected and admired person, group or thing in a particular field: My father went to school with Bill Gates — now there’s a name to conjure with!
2 (humorous) used when you mention a name that is difficult to remember or pronounce: The soup was called chlodnik — now there’s a name to conjure with!
See also: conjure, name
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
See also:
  • a name to conjure with
  • no doubt about it
  • have (one's) name in lights
  • have your name in lights
  • make a name
  • make a name for (oneself)
  • make a name for oneself
  • make a name for yourself
  • definitely not
  • Definitely not!
References in classic literature
The Nore sand remains covered at low-water, and never seen by human eye; but the Nore is a name to conjure with visions of historical events, of battles, of fleets, of mutinies, of watch and ward kept upon the great throbbing heart of the State.
Mirror of the Sea
Appears Louis Csomortanyi, a name to conjure with. He lasts through several pages of this record of the enduring soil.
John Barleycorn
The Familiars - Stacey Halls Bonnier - out now The year is 1612, the county is Lancashire, and our heroine Fleetwood Shuttleworth - quite a name to conjure with but a real figure from history - is the mistress of Gawthorpe Hall.
Books; Inside Out Quick guide to turning your free time into fun time
This line has been excerpted from one of the paragraphs of a book Dynamics of Mass Communication - a name to conjure with media academics.
Communication
TROPICS looks a name to conjure with for the Wokingham following his spreadeagling triumph in the first division of the Congratulations Mr And Mrs Brown Handicap at Windsor.
Climate is right for Tropics to warm up; RACING
I HOPE he'll forgive me for saying it, but Brendan Barber isn't a name to conjure with in the great scheme of things.
BARBER CUTS TO THE CHASE
The unmasking of the Babington plot to assassinate the Queen, and its dreadful aftermath, had rocked the country and Nick's old schoolmaster had made a terrifying homily of it - Robert Cecil, spearheading the discovery, was a name to conjure with.
MORNINGSERIAL
When the leaders spread out across the track three furlongs out, fighting both the camber and fatigue, who among us won't scan the leading six or seven and mentally begin the reckoning that leads inevitably to a new heir of the ages, a new bead on the rosary, a new name to conjure with and be held spellbound by?
Derby memories: they're buried in our psyche
UNNEFER is a name to conjure with after his clear-cut triumph in the 10-furlong conditions race at Lingfield on Saturday.
EAGLE EYE
The name Ruth Rouse (1872-1956) may not resonate with many today, but a century ago in the heyday of the Student Volunteer Movement (SVM) and its successor, the World Student Christian Federation (WSCF), hers was a name to conjure with. Ruth Franzen, who in October 1993 contributed an article on Rouse to this journal (IBMR 17:154-58), has given us a thoroughly documented, carefully researched, and highly readable analysis of Rouse's years (1897-1924) as a pioneer in women's international student ministry.
Ruth Rouse Among Students: Global, Missiological, and Ecumenical Perspectives
PARK LANE - will be a name to conjure with in the big sales race at Newmarket's Cambridgeshire fixture following his unlucky defeat at Goodwood where he was only beaten a nose by Montmorency.
Watch out for . . . Horse Power
DYFI Junction used to be a name to conjure with. It's the railway junction in the middle of nowhere, sitting smack amid a peat bog and its warbling and croaking wildlife, only approachable - other than by train - along a winding footpath.
food & drink: A traveller's rest on the Cambrian Coast line; YOUR GUIDE TO GOING OUT MY BEST N.WALES PUBS
But it's not generally known how one momentous decision made the company a name to conjure with worldwide, and how if that decision had gone the other way, Brook Motors would probably never have made it past 1910.
Current affairs at Brook Motors
Yet, 20 years after the 1987 world junior hockey championships, Piestany, a dot on the Slovak side of the sundered Czechoslovak map, remains a name to conjure with for committed hockey fans.
The Battle of Piestany: the brawl at the 1987 world junior hockey championships brought unprecedented attention to the world juniors
HERE's a name to conjure with when it comes to considering key figures for the Six Nations - Gavin Henson.
Rugby: Banned Gav still holds the key to glory