sorceress
Americannoun
Usage
What does sorceress mean? A sorceress is a woman who can perform sorcery—witchcraft or magic. The word sorcerer means the same thing but can be used for any gender, although it typically refers to a man. The word sorcery often (though not always) refers to so-called black magic—magic used for evil purposes. That’s why sorceress and sorcerer are often used to refer to evil characters in works of fiction, especially in the fantasy genre. In contrast, similar words like wizard and magician usually imply that such figures use their powers for good. If not, you’d usually call them an evil wizard or evil magician. Apart from whether or not they use their supernatural powers for good or evil, the words sorcerer and sorceress often imply that such a person is very powerful due to having great skill and command of such powers. For this reason, the word sorceress is sometimes used in a figurative way to refer to a woman who is very skilled at something, as if she has magical abilities, as in Maureen is a sorceress at coding. The word sorcery can be used to refer to such skill. The words wizard and wizardry are used (even more commonly) in the same ways. Example: The sorceress has cast a powerful spell to enchant this land.
Gender
See -ess.
Etymology
Origin of sorceress
1350–1400; Middle English < Anglo-French sorceresse, equivalent to sorcer ( see sorcerer) + -esse -ess
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.
Her winking yet bone-chilling turn as a great aunt and better soul-sucking sorceress in “Weapons” has brought Amy Madigan her second Academy Award nomination and the most focused attention in career.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 11, 2026
Elphaba, in contrast, is a naturally talented sorceress whose green skin led her father to reject her from the moment she was born.
From Salon • Dec. 2, 2024
The pattern across the jersey is inspired by a fifth-century BC vase attributed to Persephone, which depicts Ulysses and the sorceress Circe in Homer's Odyssey.
From BBC • Jul. 23, 2024
The title figure is a formidable sorceress who ends up falling in love with one of the victims she keeps on her fantastical island.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 6, 2023
She had a sudden image of herself as a sorceress, waving her hand over the field and transforming the boys below into pea-sized plastic dolls.
From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
Definitions 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.
