- witchcraft
- O.E. wiccecræft, from wicce (see witch) + cræft "power, skill" (see craft). Witchcraft was first declared a crime in Eng. law in 1542; trials there peaked in 1580s and 1640s but fell sharply after 1660. The last, in 1717, ended in acquittal. The Witchcraft Act was repealed 1736.