First attested about 1830, from Pennsylvania German hexe (“to practice witchcraft”), from German hexen (compare Hexe (“witch”)). The noun appeared later, in the 1850s. Cognate to Norwegian Bokmål heks (“witch”) and Dutch heks (“witch”), Dutch beheksen (“to bewitch”), Old English hægtesse (“witch, hag”). Doublet of hag.
Meanings
An evil spell or curse.
A witch.
(rare) A spell (now rare but still found in compounds such as hex sign and hexcraft).
fr sort (an evil spell or curse) · ar مُشَعْوِذة (a witch) · tr kargış (an evil spell or curse) · cs kletba (an evil spell or curse) · ru заклятие (rare: a spell) · fa جادو (an evil spell or curse) · ro blestem (an evil spell or curse) · pl przekleństwo (an evil spell or curse) · de Hexe (a witch) · bg магия (an evil spell or curse) · fi noita (a witch) · pl klątwa (an evil spell or curse) · nl heks (a witch) · bg вещица (a witch) · gl bruxa (a witch) · es sortilegio (rare: a spell) · pl zaklęcie (rare: a spell) · txb śāp (an evil spell or curse) · es maleficio (an evil spell or curse) · la venefica (a witch) · nl betovering (an evil spell or curse) · de Hexspruch (rare: a spell) · ru проклятие (an evil spell or curse) · de Spruch (rare: a spell) · ru ведьма (a witch) · it sortilegio (an evil spell or curse) · it strega (a witch) · hu rontás (an evil spell or curse) · da heks (a witch) · ar ساحِرة (a witch) · nb heks (a witch) · ru магия (an evil spell or curse) · es bruja (a witch) · tr büyü (an evil spell or curse) · de Verhexung (an evil spell or curse) · fr sortilège (an evil spell or curse) · fi kirous (an evil spell or curse) · fi taika (an evil spell or curse) · la imprecātiō (an evil spell or curse) · da forbandelse (an evil spell or curse) · pl urok (an evil spell or curse) · ota قارش (an evil spell or curse) · sv häxa (a witch) · fr sorcière (a witch) · fi loitsu (an evil spell or curse) · nl vloek (an evil spell or curse) · gl meiga (a witch) · la veneficus (a witch) · nl beheksing (an evil spell or curse) · grc ἀρά (an evil spell or curse) · la exsēcrātiō (an evil spell or curse) · grc κατάρα (an evil spell or curse) · pl wiedźma (a witch) · ru чары (an evil spell or curse) · tr büyücü (a witch) · de Fluch (an evil spell or curse)
First attested about 1830, from Pennsylvania German hexe (“to practice witchcraft”), from German hexen (compare Hexe (“witch”)). The noun appeared later, in the 1850s. Cognate to Norwegian Bokmål heks (“witch”) and Dutch heks (“witch”), Dutch beheksen (“to bewitch”), Old English hægtesse (“witch, hag”). Doublet of hag.
Meanings
(transitive) To cast a spell on (specifically an evil spell), to bewitch.
pt enfeitiçar (to put a hex on) · nl betoveren (to put a hex on) · cs zaklít (to put a hex on) · fi kirota (to put a hex on) · es aojar (to put a hex on) · be зачарава́ць (to put a hex on) · la exsecror (to put a hex on) · fi loitsia (to put a hex on) · cs začarovat (to put a hex on) · la imprecor (to put a hex on) · es hechizar (to put a hex on) · ru зачарова́ть (to put a hex on) · be зачаро́ўваць (to put a hex on) · grc καταράομαι (to put a hex on) · ar نَحَسَ (to put a hex on) · fa جادو کردن (to put a hex on) · nl beheksen (to put a hex on) · pl rzucić urok (to put a hex on) · pl rzucać urok (to put a hex on) · ru зачаро́вывать (to put a hex on) · fi taikoa (to put a hex on) · bg омагьосвам (to put a hex on) · la dētestor (to put a hex on) · fo ganda (to put a hex on) · fo rúna (to put a hex on) · fr ensorceler (to put a hex on)
(qualifier:video game modding; chiefly Petz; video game modding; chiefly Petz, uncountable) A modified game file.
I don't even know how to put a hex in my game if a friend makes me something. 2013 August 5, nine lives, “How to add a hexed pet to my game”, in RKC Petz Forum, archived from the original on 27 Jul 2026:
(qualifier:video game modding; chiefly Petz; video game modding; chiefly Petz) To modify a game file using a hex editor.
Modding this was called “hexing” in the community. This was because you did it with a hex editor, reading through the numbers in the files to find the “ballz” and “linez” that made up the Petz and the variables that determined their size, position, and color. 2016 May 15, melissa mcewen, “Petz: A lost community of mostly women coders/gamers”, in Medium, archived from the original on 27 Mar 2026, retrieved 27 Jul 2026: