Charm
Tergeo
TER-gay-oh
The Siphoning Charm. Pulls unwanted liquids and small particulate matter — blood, dust, ink, water — cleanly off a surface, leaving the surface untouched. A precise charm where Scourgify is a heavy one.
- Type
- Charm
- Category
- Light, Utility & Everyday
- First appearance
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
- Pronunciation
- TER-gay-oh
Tergeo is the precision version of the wizarding world's cleaning toolkit — Latin tergere, "to wipe, rub, polish." Cast at a target surface, it siphons off unwanted matter without disturbing the surface itself. Blood is lifted cleanly off skin or fabric. Dust comes out of carpet. Ink comes off parchment without smudging the writing it spilled on. The effect is more like vacuuming than scrubbing, and the charm rewards a careful hand.
Hermione uses the charm to memorable effect in Half-Blood Prince after Cormac McLaggen — playing keeper in Ron's place — sends a Bludger directly at Harry, splitting his head open. Hermione gets to him first and Tergeos the blood off his face so cleanly that the wound underneath becomes visible to Madam Pomfrey for proper healing. The scene captures the charm's everyday utility better than most: when something has to be cleaned without making things worse, Tergeo is the spell you reach for.
Tergeo sits below Scourgify in the cleaning hierarchy. Scourgify is the heavy-duty general cleaner — soap-and-bristles, no precision required, useful for grime and large messes. Tergeo is the surgical instrument: a single targeted draw, no scrubbing, no foam, no risk of damaging delicate fabric or paper. Most witches and wizards know both and choose between them depending on what's being cleaned.
In healers' work the charm has a small but important role. Madam Pomfrey, the St. Mungo's healers, and most field healers use Tergeo regularly to clear blood and other fluids from a wound site before applying healing magic — a clean wound heals more cleanly than a dirty one. The charm itself does no healing, but it sets the stage for everything that follows.
Notable uses
- Hermione siphoning blood off Harry's face after McLaggen's misfired Bludger in the Quidditch match (Half-Blood Prince).
- Routine healers' use across St. Mungo's and Hogwarts's Hospital Wing for cleaning wound sites before treatment.
- Daily household applications across magical homes — spilled ink, splashed liquids, tracked-in dust.
Tergeo FAQ
What does Tergeo mean?+
From Latin tergere — "to wipe, rub, polish, cleanse." The English words detergent and terse share the same root.
How is Tergeo different from Scourgify?+
Tergeo is a precision charm — it siphons specific unwanted matter cleanly off a surface, ideal for delicate work. Scourgify is the heavy general cleaner — it scrubs and foams, useful for grime, large messes, and surfaces that can take being scrubbed.
Can Tergeo heal a wound?+
No. The charm only cleans. It removes blood, dirt, and other matter from around or in a wound, but the actual healing requires a dedicated spell like Episkey or, for serious injuries, the work of a trained healer.
When is Tergeo taught at Hogwarts?+
It's part of the upper-year Charms curriculum, alongside other practical household and healing-adjacent charms. The cast itself is moderate difficulty; the precision is what's hard.
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