English
scum
Scum may come from Middle English scum.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scumuncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1485scum
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scumuncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1485scum
Earliest quotation: 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, xiij: “SOo by Merlyns aduys ther were sente fore rydars…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewH- ‘to cover, conceal’
house, sky, hide, hose, shun, cystic, hutch, 10 more
through Frankish *skūm
Today it means
noun A layer of impurities that accumulates at the surface of a liquid (especially molten metal or water).
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English scum / scum