English
Old Scratch
Old Scratch may come from Middle English scrat.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scratuncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1913Old Scratch
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scratuncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1913Old Scratch
Earliest quotation: 1913, Booth Tarkington, The Flirt: “Lisieux is a little town in Normandy,” she said.…”
Every English word from Middle English scrat
Today it means
name The Devil.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English scrat / Old Scratch