scan English · revision 13160

− It is Middle English scannen, earlier scanden,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) [[bor|la|scandere|t=to scan verse]], which in Classical Latin meant to climb or mount,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) from PIE [[ine-pro|*skand-|t=to spring, leap, climb]] (see [[scale]]),^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) source also of Greek [[m|grc|σκάνδαλον|tr=skándalon|t=trap, stumbling block]] and Sanskrit [[m|sa|स्कन्दति|tr=skándati|t=he leaps]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) The Late Latin sense probably alludes to raising and lowering the foot to mark the rhythm,^(Hoad 1986)^(NODE 1998) although Etymonline calls the image unclear.^(Etymonline) English lost the Latin -d-, probably because it was taken for the past-participle ending -ed.^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)