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Synonyms

werewolf

American  
[wair-woolf, weer-, wur-] / ˈwɛərˌwʊlf, ˈwɪər-, ˈwɜr- /
Or werwolf

noun

plural

werewolves

  1. (in folklore and superstition) a human being who has changed into a wolf, or is capable of assuming the form of a wolf, while retaining human intelligence.

werewolf British  
/ ˈwɛə-, ˈwɪəˌwʊlf /

noun

  1. a person fabled in folklore and superstition to have been changed into a wolf by being bewitched or said to be able to assume wolf form at will

"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

Etymology

Origin of werewolf

before 1000; Middle English werwolf, Old English werwulf, equivalent to wer man (cognate with Gothic wair, Latin vir ) + wulf wolf; cognate with Middle Dutch weerwolf, Old High German werwolf

Explanation

In European folklore, a werewolf is a man who turns into a dangerous animal at night. According to legend, the transformation of a werewolf is triggered by a full moon. Stories of werewolves have existed for thousands of years, but belief in werewolves became widespread in Europe during the Middle Ages. Today, these creatures are popular monsters that appear in books, movies, television, video games, and more. The were in werewolf comes from the Old English word wer, meaning "man."

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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.

There’s not even one shot of the moon that I can remember, and our first werewolf sighting takes place after dawn.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 15, 2025

Who knows if “Oh, Mary!” will be among the first of many reclamations of Mary Todd Lincoln as werewolf, mercenary or other genre trope.

From New York Times • Feb. 7, 2024

We can conjecture that a werewolf transformation is caused by the moon as a body on the whole fully reflecting sunlight; being physically on it could mean the effects are minimized or nullified.

From Scientific American • Oct. 27, 2023

Everyone who's coming through that door, no matter if they are a horse or a vampire or a female werewolf, those people are going to be treated with the utmost respect.

From Salon • Feb. 7, 2023

“I’ve tried everything I know, but there is no cure for werewolf bites.”

From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling

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.