accursed
UK[əˈkɜːsɪd]US[əˈkɜːrsɪd]
adj
Being under a curse; doomed to evil or misfortune.
adj
Used to express strong dislike or annoyance.
Morpheme Breakdown
ac
curse
ed
ac
to
curse
ed
Etymology
The word 'accursed' originates from the Old English verb 'acursian', meaning to pronounce a curse upon. This verb was formed by combining the intensive prefix 'a-' (from Old English, akin to Latin 'ad-') with the noun 'curs'. The core concept of 'curse' itself is of ancient Germanic origin, with cognates across Germanic languages, and its original sense was a solemn utterance intended to invoke supernatural harm or punishment. Over time, 'accursed' evolved from describing the specific act of being formally cursed to a more general adjective denoting a state of being condemned, wretched, or deserving of strong condemnation. The modern usage often carries a formal or literary tone, sometimes used hyperbolically to express great annoyance.
Analysis
Structure: ac + curse + ed
- ac: A variant of the Latin prefix 'ad-', meaning 'to' or 'towards'. It assimilates before 'c'.
- curse: From Old English 'curs', meaning a prayer or invocation for harm or evil.
- ed: An Old English suffix forming past participles and adjectives.
Examples
The treasure was said to be hidden in an accursed tomb.
He felt accursed by the gods for his hubris.
This accursed computer has crashed again!