witch
English · Thesaurus
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witch¹
- /wɪt͡ʃ/
Sounds like which (wine–whine merger), wich, wych · Rhymes with -ɪtʃ
Where it comes from
The noun is from Middle English wicche, from Old English wiċċe (“(female) witch; sorceress”) and wiċċa (“(male) witch; sorcerer; warlock”), deverbative from wiċċian (“to practice sorcery”), from Proto-Germanic *wikkōną (compare West Frisian wikje, wikke (“to foretell; to warn”), German Low German wicken (“to soothsay”), Dutch wikken, wichelen (“to dowse; to divine”)), from Proto-Indo-European *wik-néh₂-, derivation of *weyk- (“to consecrate; to separate”); akin to Latin victima (“sacrificial victim”), Lithuanian viẽkas (“life-force”), Sanskrit वि॒नक्ति॑ (vinákti, “to set apart; to separate out”). Possibly related to wicked; see that entry for more. The verb derives from the noun.
The mathematical curve derives from a translation by John Colson of the Italian versiera, from a confusion with versoria (“rope”) and avversaria (“witch”).
noun witches
- A person (now usually particularly a woman) who uses magical or supernatural powers to influence or predict events, particularly one with malicious motives. He cannot abide the old woman of Brentford; he swears she's a witch.
- A person of any gender who harmfully employs magical power (especially innate rather than ritual) […] premise (1) might be understood to mean not that witchcraft-substance in a man [woman] is invariably passed to his sons [her daughters], but that that is the invariable channel through which the trait is acquired; that is, more explicitly, that witchcraft-substance is always obtained by inherita
- A person who follows Wicca or similar New Age pagan beliefs. To be considered a Witch of a particular tradition you will have to be initiated into that tradition by someone else within that tradition, after following their specific program of study.
-
An ugly or unpleasant woman.
I hate that old witch.
Similar: old woman
- One who exercises more-than-common power of attraction; a charming or bewitching person.
- One given to mischief, especially a woman or child.
- A witch of Agnesi (cubic plane curve)
- A storm petrel.
- Glyptocephalus cynoglossus (witch flounder or Torbay sole), found in the North Atlantic.
- Lepidorhombus whiffiagonis (megrim), found in the North Atlantic.
- Caulopsetta scapha (syn. Arnoglossus scapha), found near New Zealand.
- Any member of the species Araotes lapithis of Indomalayan butterflies, of the family Lycaenidae.
Similar: magician, ugly woman, shrew
verb witches · witching · witched
- To dowse for water. And I told him there's a vein down there, I know 'caus I used to—uh, I went out here and witched one for this house, at the corner.
witch²
- /wɪt͡ʃ/
Sounds like which (wine–whine merger), wich, wych · Rhymes with -ɪtʃ
Where it comes from
From Middle English wicchen, from Old English wiċċian, from Proto-Germanic *wikkōną, from Proto-Indo-European *wik-néh₂-, derivation of *weyk-. In the senses arising in Middle English and later probably aphetic from bewitch.
witch³
- /wɪt͡ʃ/
Sounds like which (wine–whine merger), wich, wych · Rhymes with -ɪtʃ
Where it comes from
Compare wick.
noun witches
- A cone of paper which is placed in a vessel of lard or other fat and used as a taper.
witch⁴
- /wɪt͡ʃ/
Sounds like which (wine–whine merger), wich, wych · Rhymes with -ɪtʃ
Where it comes from
Chosen for its euphemistic rhyme.
noun witches
- A bitch.
WITCH⁵
proper noun W.I.T.C.H.
- Acronym of Women's International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell Late that year the New York Rat covered a feminist demonstration staged by the radical group WITCH (Women’s International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell), whose marchers exorcised money from the financial district and protested exploitive burlesque houses in downtown New York.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: hag, enchantress, crone, beldame, glamour, bewitch, enchant, hex, jinx, beldam, sorceress, warlock, witchcraft, sorcery, fairy, sorcerer
noun
Similar: magician, ugly woman, shrew
Translations
Every language
noun person who uses magic
| Español | bruja, hechicera, maga |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 무당 mudang, 마녀 manyeo |
| 日本語 | 魔女 |
| 中文 | 巫 wū, 巫婆 wūpó, 巫人 wūrén, 女巫 nǚwū, 神婆 shénpó, 魔女 mónǚ |
| हिन्दी | चुड़ैल cuṛail, जादूगरनी jādūgarnī, डाइन ḍāin |
| Kiswahili | mchawi |
| Português | bruxa, estria, estrige, feiticeira |
| Français | sorcière, stryge |
| Deutsch | Hexe, Gabelreiterin, Hexer, Hexenmeister |
| Italiano | strega, fattucchiera, versiera, maliarda, saga |
| Ελληνικά | μάγισσα mágissa |
| Română | vrăjitoare, vrăjitor |
| Русский | ве́дьма védʹma, колду́нья koldúnʹja, волше́бница volšébnica, чароде́йка čarodéjka |
| Tiếng Việt | phù thuỷ |
| العربية | سَاحِرَة sāḥira |
| עברית | מְכַשֵּׁפָה mekhashefá |
Talk about this word "witch." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/witch. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. witch. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/witch "witch." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/witch.Cite this
@misc{witch_2026,
title = {witch},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/witch},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
