Etymograph

English

sike

Sike comes from Northern Middle English sike, and goes back to Old English sīċ.

  1. Old Englishc. 450–1150sīċ
  2. Northern Middle Englishmodernsike
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1809same form

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Earlier history not traced here.

Lineage

  1. Old Englishc. 450–1150sīċ
  2. Northern Middle Englishmodernsike
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1809same form

Earliest quotation: 1809, John Skinner, Amusements of Leisure Hours: “The swankies lap thro' mire and syke, Wow as…”

The story

From Northern Middle English sike, from Old English sīċ (see sitch), possibly also from or related to Old Norse sík; both from Proto-Germanic *sīką (‘slow flowing water; trickle’).

Linked words

through Old English sīċ

sitch

Today it means

noun A gutter or ditch; a small stream that frequently dries up in the summer; the marshy ground or ditch through which such a stream flows.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Old English sīċ / sike

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