The story
- Proto-Indo-European*wr̥mis
- Proto-Italic*wormis
- Latinvermis
- Latinvermiculus
- Vulgar Latin*vermiclus
- Old Frenchvermei
- Middle Englishvermayle
- English todayvermeil
From Middle English vermayle, from Old French vermeil (“vermilion”), from Latin vermiculus (“little worm”), from vermis (“worm”), ultimately in reference to Kermes vermilio, a type of scale insect used to make a crimson dye. Doublet of vermicule.
Words from the same roots
Latinvermiculus all →
vermilionvermiculitevermicule
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.