wicked English · revision 10633

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=c. 1200|origins=ang wicca}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈwɪk.ɪd/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is formed from earlier wicke, wick, wicked, evil (1154),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) perhaps an adjective use of Old English [[m|ang|wicca|t=wizard]] (see [[witch]]),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(Cresswell 2021) and [[-ed]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) It is formed as if a past participle, but there is no matching verb; compare [[wretched]] from wretch.^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Evil, morally bad: probably before 1200, in Layamon's Brut,^(Barnhart 1988) about 1200 in Etymonline; of a person, about 1275 in the OED.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In Middle English it also meant cruel or fierce, of animals savage (14th century),^(OED 1989) and harmful or pernicious (1340).^(OED 1989) The noun use, wicked people, is from the mid-14th century,^(Etymonline) and the adverb from the early 15th.^(Etymonline) ''No peace for the wicked'' alludes to Isaiah.^(Cresswell 2021) The Wicked Fairy and Wicked Stepmother of fairy tales are from 1897.^(OED 1989) Like [[bad]], wicked has reversed its meaning in slang, “excellent”, attested by 1920 in F. Scott Fitzgerald;^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) Merriam-Webster dates the adverb “very” (''wicked good'') from 1980.^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1154 – wicke, wicked.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * before 1200 – wicked.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1340 – harmful.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1897 – the Wicked Stepmother.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1920 – excellent (slang).^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # [[evil|alt=Evil]] or morally bad.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Playfully [[mischievous]]: ''a wicked grin''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Severe or distressing; harmful.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(slang)'' Very good; [[excellent]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Adverb===

+ # ''(slang, chiefly New England)'' Very; extremely.^(AHD)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # ''the wicked'': wicked people.^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[wickedly]]

+ * [[wickedness]]

+ * [[unwicked]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[witch]]

+ * [[wretched]]

+ * [[wicca]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}