Scathe

Scathe is an English word with two primary senses, both now largely confined to historical, literary, or religious contexts. As a verb, scathe means to injure, harm, or damage something. It is rarely used in modern everyday language, and contemporary writers typically substitute harm or damage. As a noun, scathe denotes harm or injury; in older or formal texts it may appear where one would speak of damage or misfortune. The past participle form “scathed” exists but is uncommon today, while the adjective “unscathed” is widely used to mean unharmed. The related adjective “scathing” denotes harsh, severely critical treatment or commentary, and is common in contemporary English.

Origin and relations: Scathe originates from Germanic roots and is cognate with Dutch schaden and German Schaden, all referring to harm or damage. It has given rise to several modern derivatives, including “scathing” and “unscathed.”

Usage notes: In modern English, scathe is chiefly of historical or stylistic interest. It may appear in discussions of older texts, poetry, or biblical language, but is rarely encountered in everyday speech. Writers aiming for clarity typically choose synonyms that are current, such as harm, damage, injure, or spoil. The term “scathe” remains part of the etymological record of the language.

See also: unscathed, scathing, damage, harm.