Where does “piranha” come from?

piranha (Cebuano) comes from English piranha, from Portuguese piranha, from Old Tupi pirá, from Proto-Tupi-Guarani *pira — fish.

piranha (Cebuano): a piranha

Definitions

  1. a piranha

Ancestry of “piranha”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishpiranhaAny of the carnivorous freshwater fish living in...
2Portuguesepiranhapiranha; slut
3Old Tupipiráfish
4Proto-Tupi-Guarani*pirafish
Every word from Proto-Tupi-Guarani *pira →Every word from Old Tupi pirá →Every word from Portuguese piranha →
piranha — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer