An archaic or dialectal form meaning to curse; to utter curses or call down evil upon someone or something.
From Old English 'cursian,' with '-en' as an archaic infinitive or participle ending. This formation reflects Middle English verb conjugation patterns that have largely disappeared from modern standard English.
Many Old English verbs ended in '-en' (like 'write' → 'written'), but only a handful survived as active verbs—'cursen' is a fossil from that system, abandoned when English speakers simplified their grammar centuries ago.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.