Etymograph

English

scorpion

Scorpion comes from Latin scorpiō ‘a scorpion’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- ‘to cut’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)ker-1‘to cut’reconstructed
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσκορπῐ́ος2skorpĭ́os
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEscorpiō2‘a scorpion’
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċorpio2
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scorpioun2‘a scorpion or a creature like one’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1611scorpion2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek σκορπίος, which cites Beekes
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English scorpion
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Who led thee through that great and terrible wildernesse,…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)ker-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek σκορπίος, which cites Beekes‘to cut’reconstructed
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEσκορπῐ́οςWiktionary, English scorpionskorpĭ́os
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEscorpiōWiktionary, English scorpion‘a scorpion’
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċorpioWiktionary, English scorpion
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500scorpiounWiktionary, English scorpion‘a scorpion or a creature like one’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1611scorpionWiktionary, English scorpion. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “Who led thee through that great and terrible wildernesse,…”

The story

The cheerleading move is so called because of the resemblance of the raised foot to a scorpion's stinger.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- ‘to cut’

across, share, short, card, cross, cancer, screen, shirt, circle, circuit, crucial, score, curve, circus, skirt, carnival, scare, curb, shrine, circulation, crest, circa, scrutiny, scar, cancellation, shear, shred, carnage, raffle, circulate, carcinoma, shrewd, incarceration, crux, shard, carnal, cirque, riddance, coronary, crepe, 118 more

Today it means

noun Any of the order Scorpiones of arachnids related to spiders, characterised by two large front pincers and a curved tail with a venomous sting at the end.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “scorpion”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Ancient Greek σκορπίος. 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- / scorpion

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