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QUIZ
ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ
There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!
Question 1 of 7
True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

Origin of witch

before 900; Middle English wicche,Old English wicce (feminine; compare wicca(masculine) wizard; see wicked)

OTHER WORDS FROM witch

witchhood, nounwitchlike, adjectiveun·der·witch, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use witch in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for witch (1 of 3)

witch1
/ (wÉȘtʃ) /

noun
verb
(tr) to cause or change by or as if by witchcraft
a less common word for bewitch

Derived forms of witch

witchlike, adjective

Word Origin for witch

Old English wicca; related to Middle Low German wicken to conjure, Swedish vicka to move to and fro

British Dictionary definitions for witch (2 of 3)

witch2
/ (wÉȘtʃ) /

noun
a flatfish, Pleuronectes (or Glyptocephalus) cynoglossus, of N Atlantic coastal waters, having a narrow greyish-brown body marked with tiny black spots: family Pleuronectidae (plaice, flounders, etc)

Word Origin for witch

C19: perhaps from witch 1, alluding to the appearance of the fish

British Dictionary definitions for witch (3 of 3)

witch-

wych-


prefix
having pliant brancheswitchweed

Word Origin for witch-

Old English wice and wic; probably from Germanic wik- bend
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
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