Imprecate
/ˈɪm.prə.keɪt/noun
To invoke or express a curse against someone or something.
Did you know?It comes from Latin *imprecari*, meaning to pray or invoke against someone, so the word originally lived right on the border between prayer and cursing.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
imprecārī
“to pray for or against; to invoke”
Late Latin
Latin
imprecare
“to pray against; to curse”
14th Century
English
imprecaten
“to curse; to call down evil upon”
Modern English
English
imprecate
“to utter a curse or invoke evil against someone”
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