Cuticle
/ˈkjuː.tɪ.kəl/noun
A thin outer layer or skin, especially the skin at the base of a fingernail or toenail.
Did you know?Despite sounding like it should mean something sliced, *cuticle* comes from Latin *cuticula*, a diminutive of *cutis* meaning “skin,” and originally referred to a little skin or outer skin layer.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
cutis
“skin”
Late Latin
Latin
cuticula
“little skin; thin skin”
Early Modern English
English
cuticle
“a thin skin or pellicle”
Modern English
English
cuticle
“the thin layer of skin at the base of a nail; any thin outer layer”