coven

American  

[kuhv-uhn, koh-vuhn] / ˈkʌv ən, ˈkoʊ vən /

noun

1. an assembly of witches, especially a group of thirteen.

---

coven British  

/ ˈkʌvən /

noun

1. a meeting of witches

2. a company of 13 witches

---

Etymology

Origin of coven

1500–10 for sense “assembly”; 1655–65 for current sense; variant of obsolete covent assembly, religious group, convent

Explanation

A group of witches is called a coven. In books, a coven of witches often gather at night to make potions and cast spells. The mythology of witches has them meeting under cover of night, often in mysterious groups of 13. Although there are only three of them, the "weird sisters" in Shakespeare's play "Macbeth" could be considered a coven. To people who follow the contemporary religion called Wicca, a coven is a gathering, no different from a congregation in Christianity. The word coven arose in the mid-1600s, ultimately from the Latin root conventus, "assembly."

Example Sentences

In 1994, Tori Amos’ U.S. video for her piano anthem “Cornflake Girl” presents a coven of quarreling young women driven through the desert in the back of a pickup truck.

From Salon • Feb. 19, 2026

"The Witches is about that discovery that actually these benign looking women turn out to be this coven of witches, so that is embodied in the hotel," Mr O'Brien says.

From BBC • Oct. 30, 2025

"I was accused of organising a coven because I invited three other female solicitors out for lunch," she said.

From BBC • Mar. 7, 2025

He is disillusioned that all of the witches in their ragtag coven are operating just for their own agendas.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 15, 2024

Seven’s amulet filled with the muddy red color of the Spare coven, and she shut her eyes tight, wishing that she could just disappear.

From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega