means A long, curved single-edged blade fixed to a long handle, swung in sweeping strokes to cut grass or grain by hand.

from From Old English 'siðe' (also spelled 'sigðe'), tracing back to a Germanic root meaning 'to cut,' likely related to the same ancient root that gives us 'saw' and Latin 'secare' (to cut), the source of 'section' and 'sickle.' The silent 'c' in the modern spelling is a later imposter — added by writers who wrongly assumed a link to Latin 'scindere' (to split). So the blade is honest, but the spelling tells a small lie.