What is "scink"

Skink \Skink\, n. [L. scincus, Gr. ????.] [Written also scink.] (Zo["o]l.) Any one of numerous species of regularly scaled harmless lizards of the family Scincid[ae], common in the warmer parts of all the continents.

Note: The officinal skink ( Scincus officinalis) inhabits the sandy plains of South Africa. It was believed by the ancients to be a specific for various diseases. A common slender species ( Seps tridactylus) of Southern Europe was formerly believed to produce fatal diseases in cattle by mere contact. The American skinks include numerous species of the genus Eumeces, as the blue-tailed skink ( E. fasciatus) of the Eastern United States. The ground skink, or ground lizard ( Oligosoma laterale) inhabits the Southern United States.

n. (archaic form of skink English)