skumt

The origin of this word is unclear. One possibility is that it a form of the dialectal verb kumt “to bend, to stoop,” from Proto-Indo-European *kew-, *ku- “to swell, to bend” with an extra -m. The initial s would result from variation, as in the case of kumšķis ~ skumšķis (q.v.). The original meaning would thus have been “to bend, to stoop,” presumably from sadness, distress, depression (note the use of the prefix no- in the perfective noskumt; originally, no- denoted upward motion). Another hypothesis suggests a connection with the idea of “dark” or “darkening,” deriving skumt from Proto-Indo-European *kew- “to cover,” from which also Norwegian skume “dark,” Old Norse skúmi “twilight.”^[1]

• IPA^(key):

This entry needs an audio pronunciation. If you are a native speaker with a microphone, please record this word. The recorded pronunciation will appear here when it's ready.

skumt (intransitive, 1st conjugation, present skumstu, skumsti, skumst, past skumu)

1. to be, become sad, to sadden, to feel sadness, sorrow, to grieve

   skumt par neveiksmēm ― to be sad about a failure

   un tomēr viņš gaidīja pavasari un skuma, ka ziema ir tik gara un barga ― and yet he waited for spring and was sad about winter being so long and harsh

   patiesību sakot, viņš daudz neskuma par Ēvalda aiziešanu ― truth be told, he wasn't really sad about Ēvalds' departure

   dārznieks skuma pēc sava mīļotā dēla un raudāja žēlas asaras ― the gardener grieved for his beloved son and cried sorrowful tears

   vientuļa, tukša skumst pamestā māja, / dūmenī vēji tik pusnaktīs gaudo ― lonely, empty, the abandoned house is sad, / the winds in the chimney howl at midnight

• bēdāt, bēdāties
• nomākt

prefixed verbs:

• skumdēt, skumdināt
• skumīgs, skumīgums, skumība
• skumjas
• skumjš, skumjums

skumt

1. indefinite neuter singular of skum