English
cormus
Cormus comes from Ancient Greek κορμός ‘trunk of a tree with the boughs cut off’, from κείρω ‘shear’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- ‘to cut off, sever’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)ker-1‘to cut off, sever’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kéryeti1reconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*keřřō1reconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκείρω2keírō‘shear’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκορμός2kormós‘trunk of a tree with the boughs cut off’
- Englishtodaycormus2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek κείρω
- 2 Wiktionary, English cormus
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)ker-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek κείρω‘to cut off, sever’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kéryetiWiktionary, Ancient Greek κείρωreconstructed
- Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*keřřōWiktionary, Ancient Greek κείρωreconstructed
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκείρωWiktionary, English cormuskeírō‘shear’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκορμόςWiktionary, English cormuskormós‘trunk of a tree with the boughs cut off’
- EnglishtodaycormusWiktionary, English cormus
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- ‘to cut off, sever’
across, share, short, card, cross, cancer, screen, shirt, circle, circuit, score, crucial, curve, scare, circulation, skirt, carnival, curb, scar, cancellation, scrutiny, circus, shrine, crest, circa, shear, incarceration, shred, carnage, raffle, circulate, carcinoma, shrewd, crux, coronary, shard, carnal, scorpion, cirque, corona, 118 more
Today it means
noun A corm.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “cormus”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek κείρω. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- / cormus