Screw
/skruː/noun
A pointed metal fastener with a helical thread, or to fasten or move with such a device.
Did you know?The screw’s name comes from a word for something that twists, and that same twisting idea also shaped words for a spiral shell and even the screwball curve of motion.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*screu-
“to turn, bend, twist”
Late Latin
Latin
scrofa?
“No established direct Latin ancestor for English screw; the word came through Romance forms related to twisting”
Old French
Old French
escroue
“a screw, a nut, or a threaded fastener”
Middle English
English
screwe
“a twisting device or threaded fastener”
Modern English
English
screw
“a helical fastener; to fasten, drive, or turn with a screw”