# witching

Pronunciation: say "WICH-ing" /ˈwɪt͡ʃɪŋ/

## Adjective

1. Connected with witchcraft or sorcery, or with witches and sorcerers.
   - Simple: Having to do with witches or magic.
   - _The campers told ghost stories until the witching hour, then lay awake listening to the wind._
   - _The court records describe witching rites held in the forest after dark._
4. Of a person, having the power to bewitch, as by casting spells on people, animals, or things.
   - Simple: Of a person, able to put a magic spell on people or things.
   - _The tale centers on a witching widow whose glance could sour milk and lame horses._
   - _Villagers kept their children away from the witching stranger who had moved into the old mill._

## Verb

2. Present participle and gerund of witch. — present participle and gerund of witch
   - Simple: The -ing form of witch. Use it after am, is, are, was or were, or to name the action.
   - _Her grandfather spent the morning witching across the pasture with a willow rod before marking a spot for the well._
   - _The villagers accused the old woman of witching their cattle so that they gave no milk._

## Noun

3. Gerund of witch: an act of witchcraft. — gerund of witch: an act of witchcraft.
   - Simple: Gerund of witch. It means one act of witchcraft or magic.
   - _Each new witching left the townspeople more frightened of the woman on the hill._
   - _The healer claimed she could undo any witching with salt and a prayer._

## Adjective

5. Enchanting, with a charm that seems to cast a spell. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: Very charming, as if it puts a spell on you.
   - _Her witching laugh drew every eye in the ballroom._
   - _The old garden had a witching charm that made visitors linger for hours._

## Origin

**Meanings 1–2, 4–5** — From Middle English wicching, wicchand, equivalent to witch + -ing.
**Meaning 3** — From Middle English wicchinge, from Old English wiċċung ("witching, witchcraft"), equivalent to witch + -ing.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/witching (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).