different between veneficial vs venefice

English

Etymology

From venefice.

Adjective

veneficial (comparative more veneficial, superlative most veneficial)

1. (dated, now rare) Poisonous or poisoning; pertaining to poison; malignant, sorcerous.
   • 1658, Sir Thomas Browne, The Garden of Cyrus (Folio Society 2007), page 213:

     Why the Goddesses sit commonly crosse-legged in ancient draughts, Since Juno is described in the same as a veneficial posture to hinder the birth of Hercules?

   • 1963, Rossell Hope Robbins, The encyclopedia of witchcraft and demonology, page 545:

     […]

     3. The chanting, canting, or calculating witch, who works by signs and numbers.

     4. The veneficial or poisoning witch.

     5. The exorcist or conjuring witch.

   • 1964, in Nature and Life in Southeast Asia, volumes 3-4, page 393:

     […] utilization of parasitic and predacious insects for the control of crop insect pests. It is expected to find in the tropics many veneficial insects […]

English

Etymology

Latin veneficium.

Noun

venefice (plural venefices)

1. (obsolete) The act or practice of poisoning.

Related terms

• veneficial

References

• venefice in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

Latin

Adjective

ven?fice

1. vocative masculine singular of ven?ficus