Etymograph

English

vermis

Vermis comes from Latin vermis ‘worm’, and perhaps goes back to Proto-Indo-European *wer- ‘to turn, to bend’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wer-1‘to turn, to bend’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wr̥mis2‘worm’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*wormis2‘worm’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvermis2‘worm’
  5. Englishtodayvermis2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *wr̥mis
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English vermis

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wer-Wiktionary, Proto-Indo-European *wr̥mis‘to turn, to bend’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wr̥misWiktionary, English vermis‘worm’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*wormisWiktionary, English vermis‘worm’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvermisWiktionary, English vermis‘worm’
  5. EnglishtodayvermisWiktionary, English vermis

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *wer- ‘to turn, to bend’

wear, guard, ward, regard, con, garage, warn, beware, optic, ware, weir, garrison, panorama, verge, wry, reverence, prosaic, guaranty, revere, diorama, milliner, 71 more

through Proto-Indo-European *wr̥mis ‘worm’

worm, 17 more

through Latin vermis ‘worm’

varmint, vermeil, 16 more

Today it means

noun A narrow, worm-like structure found in animal brains between the hemispheres of the cerebellum; it is the site of termination of the spinocerebellar pathways that carry subconscious proprioception.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “vermis”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Proto-Indo-European *wr̥mis. 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 *wer- / vermis

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