English
spurn
Spurn comes from Middle English spurnen ‘to fall over, to misstep’, from Old English spurnan ‘to strike against, kick, spurn, reject’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sperH-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sperH-‘to kick’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*spurnaną‘to tread, kick, knock out’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*spurnanreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150spurnan‘to strike against, kick, spurn, reject’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500spurnen‘to fall over, to misstep’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588spurn
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sperH-‘to kick’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*spurnaną‘to tread, kick, knock out’reconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*spurnanreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150spurnan‘to strike against, kick, spurn, reject’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500spurnen‘to fall over, to misstep’
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588spurn
Earliest quotation: c. 1587–1588, Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […]: “Me thinks I ſee kings kneeling at his feet,…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *sperH- ‘to kick’
Today it means
verb To reject disdainfully; contemn; scorn.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *sperH- / spurn