Earthworm
/ˈɜːrθˌwɜːrm/noun
A segmented worm that lives in soil and helps break down organic matter.
Did you know?The word is an old Germanic compound, and its second half, worm, comes from a root that also gave English serpent and wyrm, linking a garden creature to the older language of crawling, uncanny beings.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
eorþwyrm
“earth worm; a worm living in the ground”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*erþō-
“earth, ground”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*wurmiz
“worm, serpent, creeping creature”
Middle English
ME
erthe worm
“a worm of the earth”
Modern English
English
earthworm
“a soil-dwelling worm”