Lycanthrope
/ˈlaɪ.kən.θroʊp/noun
A person believed to transform into a wolf or behave as though transformed into one.
Did you know?The term is linked to the myth of King Lycaon, whom Zeus supposedly transformed into a wolf as punishment for testing the god with human flesh.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*wĺ̥kʷos
“Wolf; the ancient root behind Greek lýkos, Latin lupus, and English wolf”
Ancient Greek
Greek
λύκος (lýkos)
“Wolf”
Ancient Greek
Greek
λυκάνθρωπος (lykánthrōpos)
“Wolf-person; a human believed to become a wolf”
Late Antiquity
Latin
lycanthropus
“A person afflicted by the delusion or supposed condition of becoming a wolf”
Middle French
French
lycanthrope
“Werewolf or person believed to transform into a wolf”
16th Century
English
lycanthrope
“A werewolf; later also a person suffering from lycanthropy”