lycanthropy Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun (folklore) the magical ability of a person to assume the characteristics of a wolf

WordNet

Ly*can"thro*py noun
Etymology
Gr. : cf. F. lycanthropie.
Definitions
  1. The supposed act of turning one's self or another person into a wolf. Lowell.
  2. (Med.) A kind of erratic melancholy, in which the patient imagines himself a wolf, and imitates the actions of that animal.

Webster 1913