witch
noun
a person, especially a woman, who professes or is supposed to practice magic or sorcery; a sorceress.
witch
American
[wich]
/ wɪtʃ /
noun
-
witches
plural
-
a person, especially a woman, who professes or is supposed to practice magic or sorcery; a sorceress.
This novel was about a meek businessman marrying a beautiful witch who uses her magic to help him succeed in business.
-
a woman who is supposed to have evil or wicked magical powers.
The movie features stereotypical witches in black robes and pointed hats.
-
a person who practices magic as a spiritual observance, especially as associated with neopaganism or Wicca.
She became a witch after an interest in tarot and astrology led her to classes at a local mystic shop.
-
an ugly or mean old woman; hag.
She was constantly in conflict with the old witch who used to own the building.
-
a person who uses a divining rod; dowser.
They hired a water witch to find the best location for the new well.
verb (used with object)
-
witches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
witched,
past participle, past
-
witching
present participle
-
to bring or cause by or as if by witchcraft (often followed by into, to, etc.).
She witched him into going.
-
Archaic. to affect as if by witchcraft; bewitch; charm.
verb (used without object)
-
witches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
witched,
past participle, past
-
witching
present participle
adjective
witch
1
British
/ wɪtʃ /
noun
-
historically, in mythology and fiction, a woman believed to practise magic or sorcery, esp black magic
-
a practitioner of a Nature-based religion founded on ancient beliefs, which honours both a male and female divine principle and includes the practice of magic, esp healing magic, and divination
-
informal an ugly or wicked woman
-
a fascinating or enchanting woman
-
short for water witch
verb
-
(tr) to cause or change by or as if by witchcraft
-
a less common word for bewitch
witch
2
British
/ wɪtʃ /
noun
witch-
3
British
prefix
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
witchsimple
-
witchessimple
-
have witchedperfect
-
has witchedperfect
-
am witchingprogressive
-
are witchingprogressive
-
is witchingprogressive
-
have been witchingperfect progressive
-
has been witchingperfect progressive
Past
-
witchedsimple
-
had witchedperfect
-
was witchingprogressive
-
were witchingprogressive
-
had been witchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of witch
First recorded before 900; Middle English wicche, Old English wicce, feminine of wicca “wizard”; cf. wicked
Explanation
A witch is a person with magical powers. Most towns have a spooky old woman with a lot of cats who all the neighborhood kids suspect of being a witch. The classic picture of a witch is a woman dressed in black with a tall, pointy hat, a broom, and an ugly face — this kind of witch is a popular Halloween costume. Another kind of witch is a serious believer in the religion called Wicca. The word witch is also used to describe someone who's old and unattractive — or, conversely, a young enchantress, a girl capable of bewitching a man.
Vocabulary lists containing witch
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
When asked if the investigation was seen as a witch hunt, Witt said that was generally how it was viewed in his office.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
Playwright Kat Chandler’s interpretation leaves open the question of whether our impressions of its witch are unwarranted or dead right, further muddling our judgment with the introduction of Carrie-Anne Moss’ university professor, Katherine Hargrove.
From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2026
He might simply have alerted the local authorities to a feral, barefoot witch roaming his property.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
The archdeacon was said to have replied: "We don't conduct witch hunts in the Sheffield diocese."
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
Seven looked out onto the racetrack, but there was nobody there but a lone witch spraying anti-cheating mist onto the asphalt.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
But the Evangelicals tolerate a somewhat broader range of Bible interpretation and cultural outlook, and tend to be against doctrinal witch- hunts.
From Time Magazine Archive
At the same time, she has made it clear that there will be no witch- hunts in the army if she is elected.
From Time Magazine Archive
The squat structures were nearly saturated with rich men, sportsmen, society men and their ladies, when out on the magic carpet the witch- ery which had drawn them from across the world began.
From Time Magazine Archive
Yes; if he had lived to return to his country, I fancy he would have added considerably to Afro-American witch- lore.
From The Mystery by Stewart Edward White
The woman stood as if petrified; but he continued, "You have said a great truth, witch- mother; and, as they have neither drowned nor burned you yet, you shall be paid for your proverb."
From Autobiography: Truth and Fiction Relating to My Life by John Oxenford
For a story about witches who have both the curse to kill something and the ability to resurrect it, reappraising a dead-on-arrival film is appropriately meta.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
The film resurrects the story of sisters Sally and Gillian Owens, modern day witches who face a curse that sees any man they fall in love with doomed to an early death.
From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026
The “Odyssey” may be a thrilling Greek tale of homecoming by sea, but the true story of a Greek homecoming by land—even without witches and monsters—offers other delights to readers of ancient history.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Angle and his team call it the Familiar—the same term witches use for their supernatural animal companions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 4, 2026
Old witches become enchantresses, and kindly grandmothers hide forests of secrets behind their twinkling eyes.
From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish
Eichel s witched agents last month and is now represented by Creative Artists Agency’s Pat Brisson, who represents numerous high-profile NHL players.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 18, 2021
Since then, he’s witched - or doused - for unmarked graves at other cemeteries in southeast Nebraska, and for his wife’s family in Kansas.
From Washington Times ● May 9, 2015
Ballyhooed by this handbill, "Doc" Rockefeller witched dollars out of the pop-eyed citizenry of Midwestern hamlets before the Civil War.
From Time Magazine Archive
Maurice Evans, apparently a bit witched himself, guest-stars as Samantha's warlock father.
From Time Magazine Archive
Even dinner ladies witched at me from behind the shiny counters.
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
Triple witching days, when multiple options expire, can lead to higher trading volume and market volatility.
From Barron's ● Jun. 18, 2026
This June’s expiration is what’s known as quadruple witching, when contracts for stock options, index options, index futures and single-stock futures expire simultaneously.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 1, 2026
Yet these stories have real heft and depth and will linger in the imagination well beyond the witching time of year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2025
The witching hour has begun, a disquieting moment for them to have nothing to do.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 10, 2024
She longed to duck underneath them and lean out of the window to see what the world looked like now that the witching hour was at hand.
From "The BFG" by Roald Dahl
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
