scold

Pronunciation: /ˈskoʊ̯ld/

Reading level: hard

Estimated CEFR level: B2 — Upper-Intermediate

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun someone (especially a woman) who annoys people by constantly finding fault
  2. verb censure severely or angrily
  3. verb show one's unhappiness or critical attitude

Etymology

The noun is from Middle English scold(e), skald(e), first attested in the 12th or 13th century (as scold, scolde, skolde, skald). The verb is from Middle English scolden, first attested in the late 1300s. Most dictionaries derive the verb from the noun and say the noun is probably from Old Norse skald (“poet”) (cognate with Icelandic skáld (“poet, scop”)), as skalds sometimes wrote insulting poems, though another view is that the Norse and English words are cognate to each other and to Old High German skeltan (whence Modern German schelten (“to scold, chide”)), Old Dutch skeldan (whence Modern Dutch schelden (“to scold, berate”)), all inherited from Proto-Germanic *skeldaną (“scold”).

In classic literature

Synonyms

scolder, nag, nagger, common scold

Semantic network

Broader (hypernyms)
unpleasant person
Narrower (hyponyms)
harridan

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