Etymograph

English

sharpness

Sharpness comes from Old English sċearp ‘sharp’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *(s)kerb-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kerb-1reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*skarpaz1‘sharp’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skarp1‘sharp’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċearp2‘sharp’
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċearpnes3
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500sharpnesse3
  7. Englishearliest quotation ca. 1395sharpness3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Old English scearp
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Old English scearpnes
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English sharpness
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: ca. 1395, John Wycliffe et al.: “also thei smytiden bi the scharpnesse of swerd, oxun,…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kerb-Wiktionary, Old English scearpreconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*skarpazWiktionary, Old English scearp‘sharp’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*skarpWiktionary, Old English scearp‘sharp’reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċearpWiktionary, Old English scearpnes‘sharp’
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150sċearpnesWiktionary, English sharpness
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500sharpnesseWiktionary, English sharpness
  7. Englishearliest quotation ca. 1395sharpnessWiktionary, English sharpness. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: ca. 1395, John Wycliffe et al.: “also thei smytiden bi the scharpnesse of swerd, oxun,…”

Formed from sharp + -ness

Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- ‘to cut’

…

Proto-Germanic *skarpaz ‘sharp’

Proto-West Germanic *skarp ‘sharp’

Old English sċearp ‘sharp’

Middle English scharp ‘sharp’

English sharp

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *(s)kerb-

scrub, 5 more

Today it means

noun the cutting ability of an edge; keenness.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “sharpness”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Old English scearp, Old English scearpnes. 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)kerb- / sharpness

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