witching

1 of 2

noun

witch·​ing ˈwi-chiŋ How to pronounce witching (audio)
: the practice of witchcraft : sorcery

witching

2 of 2

adjective

: of, relating to, or suitable for sorcery or supernatural occurrences
the very witching time of nightWilliam Shakespeare

Examples of witching in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Trading activity tends to pick up on the quadruple witching day because investors readjust expiring positions. WSJ, 16 June 2023 Although today is a triple witching with stock options, futures and options on futures all expiring and that can sometimes cause a bit of volatility. Jj Kinahan, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2023 And so the witching begins. Jen Wang, Vogue, 9 Feb. 2022 Triple witching days happen once per quarter. Bernhard Warner, Fortune, 17 Sep. 2021 This year most pre-Halloween festivities will be in schools on Friday before the witching date (Sunday). Walter Loeb, Forbes, 18 Oct. 2021 Meanwhile, Friday also happened to be a quadruple witching, a day that happens once every quarter when a bunch of stock and index options and futures contracts expire at the same time. Anne Sraders, Fortune, 20 Sep. 2021 Quadruple witching occurs once per quarter on the third Friday of March, June, September, and December. Q.ai - Investing Reimagined, Forbes, 21 June 2021 Volatility is back up this morning, and that’s no surprise with quadruple witching tomorrow. Jj Kinahan, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2021
Adjective
Sabrina’s known to don a preppy red peacoat and a black headband; her witching rivals, the Weird Sisters, have coordinating long-sleeve tea dresses with lace Peter Pan collars. Halie Lesavage, Glamour, 25 Oct. 2018 Both games also came down to a pair of clutch hits at what appeared to be the witching hour for the depleted bullpen and featured terrific defense. Peter Schmuck, baltimoresun.com, 3 Sep. 2017 The average Trump supporter’s concern about Russia roughly matches his concern about the president’s unreleased tax returns or witching-hour tweets. Jason L. Riley, WSJ, 18 July 2017

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'witching.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1567, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of witching was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near witching

Cite this Entry

“Witching.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/witching. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

witching

adjective
witch·​ing
ˈwich-iŋ
: of, relating to, or suitable for witchcraft
the witching hour

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