Where does “sorcery” come from?
Sorcery comes from Middle English sorcery, from Middle French sorcerie, from Latin sors meaning lot or fate, from Proto-Indo-European seh₁- and ser-.
sorcery (English): Magical power; the use of witchcraft or magic...
Definitions
- Magical power; the use of witchcraft or magic...
Ancestry of “sorcery”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | sorcery | sorcery, wizardry, magic; A supernatural event |
| 2 | Middle French | sorcerie | — |
| 3 | Latin | sors | anything used to determine chances, lot; a... |
| 4 | Latin | legere | second-person singular future passive indicative... |
| 5 | Latin | legō | to collect, gather, bring together, catch |
| 6 | Latin | lēx | a proposition or motion for a law made to the people by a magistrate, a bill |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | lēg- | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | leǵ-s | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | leǵ- | to gather, collect, with derivatives meaning to... |