Cunning: The word 'can' — as in 'I can do… | etymologist.ai
cunning
/ˈkʌnɪŋ/·adjective·c. 1325 CE, Middle English 'kunnynge', meaning 'knowledge, skill'·Established
Origin
From Old English cunnan ('to know') via Proto-Germanic *kunnaną and PIE *ǵneh₃-, 'cunning' once meant simply 'learned' — its drift into guile reflects a systemic shift as neighbouring signs absorbed the neutral sense, leaving it stranded at the morally marked edge of cognition.
Definition
Having or showing skill in achieving one's ends by deceit or evasion; originally meaning 'learned' or 'knowledgeable', derived from the Old English present participle of 'cunnan' (to know, to be able).
The Full Story
Old Englishc. 1000 CEwell-attested
OldEnglish 'cunning' derives from the present participle of the verb 'cunnan', meaning 'to know, to have knowledge of, to be able'. The Old English form 'cunnende' or 'cunninge' meant literally 'knowing, learned, skilful' — a thoroughly positive quality denoting intellectual mastery and practical expertise. 'Cunnan' is a preterite-present verb (one of a small, archaic class where the past tense form took on present-tense meaning), cognate with Old High
Did you know?
Theword 'can' — as in 'I can do this' — is a direct grammatical relative of 'cunning': both descend from Proto-Germanic *kunnaną, 'to know, to be able'. English modal verbs like 'can', 'may', 'shall', and 'must' are fossilised relics of an archaic verb class whose present tense was built on old perfect endings, meaning 'I can' was originally 'I have come to know'. Every time a speakersays
from Latin). The semantic shift from 'knowledgeable' to 'crafty, sly' occurred gradually through the 14th–16th centuries. As practical ingenuity began to be associated with deception, 'cunning' absorbed a pejorative edge, particularly in contexts where clever persons were suspected of trickery. By Shakespeare's time both senses coexisted: a 'cunning man' could be a wise healer or a manipulative schemer. By the 17th century the negative sense dominated in common usage, aided by Puritan suspicion of folk knowledge and magic. Scholars including the OED and Skeat's 'Etymological Dictionary of the English Language' document the full arc. The word is first attested in Middle English circa 1325 as 'kunnynge'. Key roots: *ǵneh₃- (Proto-Indo-European: "to know, to recognise; base of words for knowledge across the IE family"), *kunnaną (Proto-Germanic: "to know, to be able; source of English 'can', 'ken', 'cunning', 'uncouth'"), cunnan (Old English: "to know, to be able; preterite-present verb ancestral to modern 'can'").