From Middle English sythe, sithe, from Old English sīþe, sīgþe, sigdi, from Proto-West Germanic *sigiþi, from Proto-Germanic *sigiþiz, *sigiþō, derived from *seg-, from Proto-Indo-European *sek-.

Immediate Germanic - cognates include Middle Low German sēgede, Dutch zicht, Icelandic sigð (all “sickle”). More distantly related with Dutch zeis, German Sense (both “scythe”). Also akin to English saw, which see.

The silent c crept in during the early 15th century owing to pseudoetymological association with Medieval Latin scissor (“tailor, carver”), from Latin scindere (“to cut, rend, split”).

The verb, which was first used in the intransitive sense, is from the noun.

• IPA: /ˈsaɪð/, (some accents) IPA: /ˈsaɪθ/

scythe (plural scythes)

1. An instrument for mowing grass, grain, etc. by hand, composed of a long, curving blade with a sharp concave edge, fastened to a long handle called a snath. [before 10th century]
   • 1609, William Shakespeare, “Sonnet 12”, in Shake-speares Sonnets. […], London: By G[eorge] Eld for T[homas] T[horpe] and are to be sold by William Aspley, →OCLC ↗:

     And nothing 'gainst Time's scythe can make defence
     Save breed, to brave him when he takes thee hence.

2. (historical) A scythe-shaped blade attached to ancient war chariots.
3. (cartomancy) The tenth Lenormand card.

• French: faux
• German: Sense
• Italian: falce
• Portuguese: gadanha, foice
• Russian: коса́
• Spanish: guadaña

• German: Sichel

scythe (scythes, present participle scything; simple past and past participle scythed)

1. (intransitive) To use a scythe. [from 1570s]
2. (transitive) To cut with a scythe. [from 1570s]
3. (transitive) To cut off as with a scythe; to mow. [from 1590s]
4. (intransitive, figurative, often with through) To attack or injure as if cutting.

• French: faucher
• German: sensen, mähen
• Italian: falciare
• Portuguese: ceifar, gadanhar, segar
• Russian: коси́ть
• Spanish: guadañar