skudra

See also: skudrā

Latvian

Skudra

Alternative forms

Etymology

This word has the same origin as the verb skaust (“to envy, to (be)grudge”) (q.v.) and the adjective skaudrs (“sharp, acute, biting”): the Proto-Indo-European stem *skaud-, *skud- (with an extra -r, yielding Proto-Baltic *skudr-). The original meaning was therefore “that which cuts, pierces, bites.” Cognates include Lithuanian skudrùs (“quick, crafty; sharp, cutting”).[1]

Noun

skudra m

  1. (dialectal) genitive singular of skudrs

skudra f (4th declension)

  1. ant (many species of insects from the family Formicidae, usually forming big colonies)
    melnā skudra ― black ant
    lielā dzeltenā skudra ― big yellow ant
    sarkanās, rūsganās skudras ― red, rusty ants
    meža skudras ― forest ants
    skudru pūznis ― anthill
    skudru oliņas ― ant eggs
    skudru spirts ― ant alcohol (a solution of formic acid in ethanol)
    čakls kā skudra ― industrious as an ant

Declension

References

  1. Karulis, Konstantīns (1992) “skudra”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, →ISBN
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