scathe

English

Alternative forms

scath (dialectal or obsolete)
skaith, scaith (Scotland)

Etymology 1

From Middle English scathe, from Old English sceaþa (also sceaþu) ("scathe, harm, injury"), from Proto-Germanic *skaþô (“damage, scathe”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kēt- (“damage, harm”).

Noun

scathe (plural scathes)

Harm; damage; injury; hurt; misfortune.

Quotations

For usage examples of this term, see the citations page.

Translations

harm; damage; injury; hurt; misfortune

Russian: вред (ru) (vred) m , ущерб (ru) (uščérb) m

Spanish: daño (es) m, herida (es) f, infortunio (es) m

Etymology 2

From Middle English scathen, skathen, from Old English sceaþan, scaþan (“to scathe, hurt, harm, injure”) and Old Norse skaða (“to hurt”); both from Proto-Germanic *skaþōną (“to injure”). Cognate with Danish skade, German schaden, Swedish skada; compare Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌸𐌾𐌰𐌽 (skaþjan), Old Norse skeðja (“to hurt”). Compare Ancient Greek ἀσκηθής (askēthēs, “unhurt”), Albanian shkathët (“skillful, adept, clever”), Polish skaleczyć (“to hurt, scathe”).

Pronunciation

IPA: /skeɪð/
Rhymes: -eɪð

Verb

scathe (third-person singular simple present scathes, present participle scathing, simple past and past participle scathed)

(archaic) To injure.
- Milton
  As when heaven's fire / Hath scathed the forest oaks or mountain pines.
- Washington Irving
  Strokes of calamity that scathe and scorch the soul.