spurn

The story

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*sperH-
2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*spurnaną“to tread, kick, knock out”
3. Old English · inherited fromspurnan“to strike against, kick, spurn, reject; stumble”
4. Middle English · inherited fromspurnen
5. English todayspurn

From Middle English spurnen, spornen, from Old English spurnan (“to strike against, kick, spurn, reject; stumble”), from Proto-Germanic *spurnaną (“to tread, kick, knock out”), from Proto-Indo-European *sperH-. Cognate with Scots spurn (“to strike, push, kick”), German spornen (“to spur on”), Icelandic sporna, spyrna (“to kick”), Latin spernō (“despise, distain, scorn”). Related to spur and spread.

Words from the same roots