Etymology

scabies

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Today it means: An infestation of parasitic mites, Sarcoptes scabiei, causing intense itching caused by the mites burrowing into the skin of humans and other animals. It is easily transmissible from human to human; secondary skin infection may occur. Full definition →

Middle English scabies ← Latin scabiēs
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The story

  1. Latin · derived fromscabiēs“scurf; scab, mange, itch”
  2. Middle English · inherited fromscabies
  3. English todayscabies

From Middle English scabies, scabiez, from Latin scabiēs (“scurf; scab, mange, itch”), from scabō (“scratch, scrape”, verb).

Words from the same roots

Latinscabiēs all →

scabious

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.