The story
From Old English sipian, related to seep. * around 888 AD, K Aelfred, translation of Boethius, Chapter 33, para.5 , : "Seo eorþe hit helt & be sumum dæle swilgþ, & for þam sype heo biþ geleht."
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
sipe
Today it means: Slit in a tire to drain away surface water and improve traction. Full definition →