Sward
/swɔːrd/noun
The upper layer of soil held together by grass and plant roots, especially a grassy turf.
Did you know?Old English used sweard for both turf and the skin or rind of things, linking a grassy field to the image of a protective outer layer.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*swardą
“Skin, hide, rind, or outer covering”
Old English
Old English
sweard
“Skin, rind, crust, or turf”
Middle English
Middle English
swerd
“Turf or grassy ground”
14th Century
English
sward
“The grassy surface or turf of land”
Modern English
English
sward
“A layer of grass and intertwined roots covering soil”