Where does “charm” come from?

Charm comes from Old French charme, from Latin carmen meaning song or incantation, from Proto-Indo-European roots kan- and garmos related to keh₂n-.

charm (English): An object, act or words believed to have magic...

Definitions

  1. An object, act or words believed to have magic...

Ancestry of “charm”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishcharmeA phrase believed to have magical efficacy; a...
2Old Frenchcharmeenchantment; magic spell
3Latincarmensong, tune
4Proto-Indo-Europeankan-to sing; hemp

Words derived from “charm

Every word from Proto-Indo-European kan-