from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Werewolf \Were"wolf`\, n.; pl. {Werewolves}. [AS. werwulf; wer a
man + wulf a wolf; cf. G. w[aum]rwolf, w[aum]hrwolf,
wehrwolf, a werewolf, MHG. werwolf. [root]285. See {Were} a
man, and {Wolf}, and cf. {Virile}, {World}.]
A person transformed into a wolf in form and appetite, either
temporarily or permanently, whether by supernatural
influences, by witchcraft, or voluntarily; a lycanthrope.
Belief in werewolves, formerly general, is not now extinct.
[1913 Webster]
The werwolf went about his prey. --William of
Palerne.
[1913 Webster]
The brutes that wear our form and face,
The werewolves of the human race. --Longfellow.
[1913 Webster] Werk