Where does “threescore” come from?
Threescore comes from Old English þrī-score, where þrī derives from Proto-Germanic þrīz and ultimately Proto-Indo-European tréyes, both meaning three.
threescore (English): Sixty
Definitions
- Sixty
Ancestry of “threescore”, step by step
threescore traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English score
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | score | The total number of goals, points, runs, etc.... |
| 2 | Middle English | score | score |
| 3 | Old English | scoru | notch; tally; score |
| 4 | Old Norse | skór | shoe |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | skōhaz | shoe |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | skewk- | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)kew- | to caw, to howl; to cover, hide; to cover, hide,... |