Scurvy
/ˈskɜːr.vi/noun
A disease caused by vitamin C deficiency, marked by weakness, bleeding gums, and poor wound healing.
Did you know?The word likely came through a chain of meanings tied to skin disease and scabby eruptions, and for centuries it carried the grim aura of a wasting, filthy affliction rather than a neat medical diagnosis.
Etymological Timeline
Late Old English / Old Norse influence
Germanic
skurf / skyrfa (reconstructed influence)
“A rough, scabby, or scurfy condition of the skin”
Middle English
English
scurvy
“Scabby, mangy, or diseased; also used as a general insult for something contemptible”
15th–16th Century
English
scurvy
“A wasting disease seen especially among sailors, later identified as vitamin C deficiency”
Modern English
English
scurvy
“A deficiency disease caused by lack of vitamin C”