English word origin

Etymology of scran

Probably of North Germanic origin, from or cognate with Old Norse skran (“rubbish; marine stores”). Compare Icelandic skran (“junk”), Danish skrammel (“junk, lumber”). Doublet of scrawn.

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology · variant 1/2

Original entry ↗

verb

To eat. · To steal in a mischievous manner; pinch, nick.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Probably of North Germanic origin, from or cognate with Old Norse skran (“rubbish; marine stores”). Compare Icelandic skran (“junk”), Danish skrammel (“junk, lumber”). Doublet of scrawn.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Derivation mentionskrannon · rubbish; marine stores
Cognate mentionskranis · junk
Cognate mentionskrammelda · junk, lumber
Doublet mentionscrawnen

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    {
      "name": "uder",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmq",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "North Germanic"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "skran",
        "t": "rubbish; marine stores"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse skran (“rubbish; marine stores”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "is",
        "2": "skran",
        "t": "junk"
      },
      "expansion": "Icelandic skran (“junk”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da",
        "2": "skrammel",
        "t": "junk, lumber"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish skrammel (“junk, lumber”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "scrawn"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of scrawn"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "skran",
      "skran#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "skran",
      "skran#Icelandic"
    ],
    [
      "skrammel",
      "skrammel#Danish"
    ],
    [
      "scrawn",
      "scrawn#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To eat.",
        "To steal in a mischievous manner; pinch, nick."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Scotland",
        "slang",
        "Northern-England"
      ],
      "recordId": "69be21915c68492c6e6a515b8a3e05989e7e8cf77e439e27bfe6c7747b4a22d8",
      "rawRecordSha256": "28204740ea0cb201d748244e3d99e57540de61350db9086927a69c309434bb6c",
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Unnumbered source etymology · variant 2/2

Original entry ↗

noun

Food, especially that of an inferior quality; grub. · Refuse; rubbish.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Probably of North Germanic origin, from or cognate with Old Norse skran (“rubbish; marine stores”). Compare Icelandic skran (“junk”), Danish skrammel (“junk, lumber”). Doublet of scrawn.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Derivation mentionskrannon · rubbish; marine stores
Cognate mentionskranis · junk
Cognate mentionskrammelda · junk, lumber
Doublet mentionscrawnen

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmq",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "North Germanic"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "skran",
        "t": "rubbish; marine stores"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse skran (“rubbish; marine stores”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "is",
        "2": "skran",
        "t": "junk"
      },
      "expansion": "Icelandic skran (“junk”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da",
        "2": "skrammel",
        "t": "junk, lumber"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish skrammel (“junk, lumber”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "scrawn"
      },
      "expansion": "Doublet of scrawn"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "skran",
      "skran#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "skran",
      "skran#Icelandic"
    ],
    [
      "skrammel",
      "skrammel#Danish"
    ],
    [
      "scrawn",
      "scrawn#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Welsh",
      "lang_code": "cy",
      "word": "sgram",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Food, especially that of an inferior quality; grub.",
        "Refuse; rubbish."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Ireland",
        "UK",
        "slang",
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      ],
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}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for scran →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-c2NyYW4