I. ˈwich noun
( -es )
Etymology: Middle English wyche, from Old English wice, wic; probably akin to Old English wīcan to yield, give way — more at weak
: any of several trees having pliant branches
II. noun
( -es )
Etymology: Middle English wicche, from Old English wicca, masculine, wizard & wicce, feminine, witch; akin to Old English wiccian to practice witchcraft, Middle High German wicken to bewitch, to divine, Old English wigle divination, wiglian to divine, wīg idol, image, Old Norse vē temple — more at victim
1.
a. dialect Britain : wizard , sorcerer
b.
(1) : a woman practicing the black arts : sorceress
Halloween witch on a broomstick
heard of one old witch changing herself into a pigeon — John Rhys
(2) : an ugly old woman : crone , hag
a skinny old witch with a face like a meat ax and a voice like a buzz saw — Helen Eustis
c.
(1) : one supposed to possess supernatural powers especially by compact with the devil or a familiar
(2) : a magic spell : hex
it's my idea … he put the witches on it — Helen Rich
d. or witch·er -chə(r) -s : dowser
2. : one that bewitches
the quaint witch memory — P.B.Shelley
specifically : a particularly charming or alluring woman
3.
a.
(1) : storm petrel
(2) : grebe
(3) or witch bird : ani
b. also witch flounder : a small-mouth blackish or brownish deepwater flounder ( Glyptocephalus cynoglossus ) of the north Atlantic that is of some importance as a food fish
c. : witch moth
III. adjective
: of, relating to, or used against witches
witch cult
witch doors used to ward off evil spirits
IV. verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Middle English wicchen, from Old English wiccian to practice witchcraft
1. : bewitch
2. : dowse