skeyd- (Proto-Indo-European)

Where does "skeyd-" come from?

The Proto-Indo-European root '*skeyd-' carries the core meaning of 'to split' or 'to divide'[1]. It functions as an extension of the broader Proto-Indo-European root '*skey-'[1]. Linguists suggest that this primary form '*skey-' may have originated from a reanalysis of the root '*sek-' meaning 'to cut' combined with the suffix '*-éy-'[2].

Open questions

• The derivation of the primary root '*skey-' from the combination of '*sek-' and '*-éy-' remains a theoretical reanalysis. [2]

Full etymology tree

• *skeyd- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to split, to divide'
  • derived *skey- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to split, to dissect'
    • derived *sek- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to cut, cut off, sever'
    • suffix *-éy- (Proto-Indo-European)

Sources

1. skeyd- (Proto-Indo-European) - Wiktionary
2. skey- (Proto-Indo-European) - Wiktionary

Updated August 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris