Where does “scammer” come from?
scammer (English) comes from English scam, from English scamp, from Middle Dutch schampen, from Old French escamper, from Vulgar Latin excappare, from Latin -āre, from Proto-Italic -āō, from Proto-Indo-European -eh₂yéti — he, she.
scammer (English): A swindler, cheat
Ancestry of “scammer”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | scam | A fraudulent deal; Something that is promoted... |
| 2 | English | scamp | A rascal, swindler, or rogue; a ne'er-do-well; A... |
| 3 | Middle Dutch | schampen | slip away |
| 4 | Old French | escamper | to run away, to make one's escape |
| 5 | Vulgar Latin | excappare | present active infinitive of *excappō;... |
| 6 | Latin | -āre | — |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | -āō | Forms primarily denominative verbs |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 11 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |