Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun That which has the power of opposing or counteracting the effect of a charm; an opposite charm, as of one person in contrast with another.
  • To counteract the effect of a charm or of charms upon; affect by opposing charms.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun That which has the power of destroying the effect of a charm.
  • transitive verb To destroy the effect of a charm upon.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun That which counteracts a charm; a counterspell.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

counter- +‎ charm

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Examples

  • Roggit told me about things like that, where a spell could work just the same, but would need a different countercharm depending on whether the wizard held his left thumb up or sideways on one gesture.

    With a Single Spell Watt-Evans, Lawrence, 1954- 1987

  • She refused to eat dinner with him while he retained his ghastly aspect, and he could find no countercharm he felt competent to use, but fortunately the spell wore off in time.

    With a Single Spell Watt-Evans, Lawrence, 1954- 1987

  • It's a standard little curse, useful for revenge or blackmail — but in this case, the wizard had been feeling particularly vengeful, and had booby-trapped the spell, linking it to some very complicated wizardry we couldn't be bothered untangling for any price the victim could pay, so that we couldn't use the usual countercharm.

    The Misenchanted Sword Watt-Evans, Lawrence, 1954- 1985

  • If a person could figure out a way to nullify the effect in himself, perhaps with a countercharm, he could live here in absolute safety.

    A Spell For Chameleon Anthony, Piers 1977

  • If a person could figure out a way to nullify the effect in himself, perhaps with a countercharm, he could live here in absolute safety.

    A Spell For Chameleon Anthony, Piers 1977

  • Just as in Scandinavia the parasitic rowan is deemed a countercharm to sorcery, so in Germany the parasitic mistletoe is still commonly considered a protection against witch-craft, and in Sweden, as we saw, the mistletoe which is gathered on Midsummer Eve is attached to the ceiling of the house, the horse's stall or the cow's crib, in the belief that this renders the Troll powerless to injure man or beast.

    The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion 1922

  • Just as in Scandinavia the parasitic rowan is deemed a countercharm to sorcery, so in Germany the parasitic mistletoe is still commonly considered a protection against witch-craft, and in Sweden, as we saw, the mistletoe which is gathered on Midsummer Eve is attached to the ceiling of the house, the horse’s stall or the cow’s crib, in the belief that this renders the Troll powerless to injure man or beast.

    Chapter 68. The Golden Bough 1922

  • Scandinavia the parasitic rowan is deemed a countercharm to sorcery, so in Germany the parasitic mistletoe is still commonly considered a protection against witch-craft, and in Sweden, as we saw, the mistletoe which is gathered on Midsummer Eve is attached to the ceiling of the house, the horse's stall or the cow's crib, in the belief that this renders the Troll powerless to injure man or beast.

    The Golden Bough James George Frazer 1897

  • Othello, the hero of their tribe, won his Desdemona, in whose love he finds the countercharm of his wandering life.

    Lectures and Essays Goldwin Smith 1866

  • And yet I have known some who have secured themselves for this misfortune by coming half-sated elsewhere, purposely to abate the ardour of their fury, and others who being grown old, find themselves less impotent by being less able; and particularly one who found an advantage by being assured by a friend of his that had a countercharm against certain enchantments that would defend him from this disgrace.

    Aphrodisiacs and Anti-aphrodisiacs: Three Essays on the Powers of Reproduction John Davenport 1833

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