The old idea that words possess magical powers is false; but its falsity is the distortion of a very important truth. Words do have a magical effect - but not in the way that magicians supposed, and not on the objects they were trying to influence. Words are magical in the way they affect the minds of those who use them.
Quoted as the opening passage of "BOOK ONE: The Functions of Language" in "Language in Thought and Action" by S. I. Hayakawa, (p. 3), 1949.
