Where does “meschief” come from?
meschief (Old French) comes from Old French meschever, from Old French mes, from Latin magis, from Dutch magisch, from Dutch magie, from French magie, from Middle French magie, from Latin magīa — to be able.
meschief (Old French): misfortune; mishap; evil deed, wrong
Definitions
- misfortune; mishap; evil deed, wrong
Ancestry of “meschief”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | meschever | to fail; to make a mistake; to suffer a... |
| 2 | Old French | mes | but; my |
| 3 | Latin | magis | more; more greatly; better |
| 4 | Dutch | magisch | magical, controlled or determined by supernatural... |
| 5 | Dutch | magie | magic, sorcery occult woo, black or white magic, etc.; hence supernatural occurrences or phenonomena |
| 6 | French | magie | magic; A magical, surprising, fascinating feat;... |
| 7 | Middle French | magie | — |
| 8 | Latin | magīa | magic, sorcery |
| 9 | Ancient Greek | μαγεία | theology of the Magians |
| 10 | Ancient Greek | Μάγος | magician, and derogatorily sorcerer, trickster,... |
| 11 | Old Persian | 𐎶𐎦𐏁 | priest |
| 12 | Proto-Iranian | magúš | — |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-Iranian | magʰúš | — |
| 14 | Proto-Indo-European | megʰ-ú-s | — |
| 15 | Proto-Indo-European | megʰ- | to be able |