Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “scratchy” come from?

Scratchy comes from Middle English scratch with the suffix -y from Middle French -ie, derived from Latin -ia and -ivus, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European -kos.

scratchy (English): Characterized by scratches; Annoying, irritating,...

Definitions

  1. Characterized by scratches; Annoying, irritating,...

Ancestry of “scratchy”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-yAdded to nouns and adjectives to form adjectives...
2Middle English-yDesignates an adjective, in many cases formed by...
3Old English-iġ-y, -ic
4Proto-West Germanic-gForms adjectives from nouns and verbs with a...
5Proto-Germanic-gaz-y
6Proto-Indo-European-ḱos-y, -ic

Words derived from “scratchy”

  • scratchiness
  • scratchily
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -ḱos →