hagridden

[hag-rid-n]

adjective

worried or tormented, as by a witch.

Origin of hagridden

First recorded in 1675–85; hag¹ + ridden

hagride

[hag-rahyd]

verb (used with object), hag·rode or (Archaic) hag·rid; hag·rid·den or (Archaic) hag·rid; hag·rid·ing.

to afflict with worry, dread, need, or the like; torment.

Origin of hagride

First recorded in 1655–65; hag¹ + ride

Related formshag·rid·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for hag-ridden

Historical Examples of hag-ridden

"I'm not imaginative," he said, "but if I'd been hag-ridden as you have——" He broke off abruptly.
Regiment of Women
Clemence Dane
Whitaker waited by the desk, a gaunt, weary man, hag-ridden by fear.
The Destroying Angel
Louis Joseph Vance
Europe, he says ('Chartism'), lay "hag-ridden" and "quack-ridden."
Library of the World's Best Literature, Ancient and Modern, Vol. VIII
Various
We thought him looking old and hag-ridden, but Doria seemed happy.
Jaffery
William J. Locke
He was neither overlorded by sentiment nor hag-ridden by imagination.
The Human Drift
Jack London

British Dictionary definitions for hag-ridden

hag-ridden

adjective

tormented or worried, as if by a witch
facetious (of a man) harassed by women

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for hag-ridden

1680s, "afflicted by nightmares," from hag (n.) + ridden. An old term for sleep paralysis, the sensation of being held immobile in bed, often by a heavy weight, and accompanied by a sense of alien presence. A holed stone hung over the bed was said to prevent it. Hag-ride as a verb is attested from 1660s.