skudra
See also: skudrā
Latvian
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
- (dialectal) genitive singular of skudrs
skudra f (4th declension)
- 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
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | skudra | skudras |
| genitive | skudras | skudru |
| dative | skudrai | skudrām |
| accusative | skudru | skudras |
| instrumental | skudru | skudrām |
| locative | skudrā | skudrās |
| vocative | skudra | skudras |
References
- ^ Karulis, Konstantīns (1992) “skudra”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca [Latvian Etymological Dictionary][1] (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, →ISBN