scold
/ˈskoʊ̯ld/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.81 in modern English
8
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
1
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A person who habitually scolds, in particular a troublesome and angry woman.
verb
Of birds, to make harsh vocalisations in aggression.
verb
Misconstruction of scald.
Example Sentences
- "A ſclaunderous tunge, a tunge of a ſkolde, Worketh more miſchiefe than can be tolde; That, if I wiſt not to be controlde, Yet ſomwhat to ſay I dare well be bolde,"
- "“Well, I won’t have it, and that’s enough.” She laughed, for her voice had a little been that of the professional scold."
- "Near the pond was the ducking-stool where many a village scold had her tongue temporarily stilled."
- "Consider the contrast with the United States, where deficit scolds dominated Beltway discourse in 2010–2011 but never managed to dictate the terms of political debate […]"
- "I advise that you refrain from using that kind of language at home, lest your mother scold you."
- "A week elapsed before she could see Elizabeth without scolding her —"
Etymology
The noun is from Middle English scold(e), skald(e), first attested in the 12th or 13th century (as scold, scolde, skolde, skald). The verb is from Middle English scolden, first attested in the late 1300s. Most dictionaries derive the verb from the noun and say the noun is probably from Old Norse skald (“poet”) (cognate with Icelandic skáld (“poet, scop”)), as skalds sometimes wrote insulting poems, though another view is that the Norse and English words are cognate to each other and to Old High German skeltan (whence Modern German schelten (“to scold, chide”)), Old Dutch skeldan (whence Modern Dutch schelden (“to scold, berate”)), all inherited from Proto-Germanic *skeldaną (“scold”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈskoʊ̯ld/
- British English: /ˈskəʊ̯ld/