English
varmint
Varmint comes from Latin vermis ‘worm’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *wr̥mis.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wr̥mis‘worm’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*wormis‘worm’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvermis‘worm’
- Englishearliest quotation 1860varmint
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wr̥mis‘worm’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*wormis‘worm’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvermis‘worm’
- Englishearliest quotation 1860varmint
Earliest quotation: 1860, – 1861 August, Charles Dickens: “You'd be but a fierce young hound indeed, if…”
The story
Dialectal form of vermin, derived from Latin vermis (‘worm’), c. 1530–1540s. Perhaps influenced by Latin vargus (‘bandit, outlaw, scoundrel’), though the pronunciation in /ɑː(ɹ)/ is more likely due to the same lowering of /ɛr/ > /ar/ found in carve < Middle English kerven and starve < Middle English sterven. The final syllable is probably altered after -ment; compare parchment < Middle English parchemyn.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *wer- ‘to turn, to bend’
wear, guard, con, regard, reward, ward, garage, warn, verge, optic, weir, garrison, beware, panorama, malware, ware, reverence, revere, wry, prosaic, diorama, guaranty, milliner, 66 more
through Proto-Indo-European *wr̥mis ‘worm’
through Latin vermis ‘worm’
vermilion, vermin, vermeil, vermicelli, vermiculite, 13 more
Today it means
noun A pestilent or predatory ground-borne animal, especially one that kills or harasses a farmer's animals or crops.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *wr̥mis / varmint