Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “arse” come from?

Arse comes from Middle English ers and ars, from Old English ærs, from Latin ars meaning skill or craft, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₂er-.

arse (English): The buttocks or more specifically, the anus; A...

Definitions

  1. The buttocks or more specifically, the anus; A...

Ancestry of “arse”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englisharsarse, anus; bottom, buttocks; plural of art
2Old Frencharz—
3Latinartessecond-person singular present active subjunctive...
4Latinarsart; skill, craft, handicraft, trade, power
5Proto-Italicartis—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂értisfitting
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂er-to fit, to fix, to put together

Words derived from “arse”

  • bottle
  • Aristotle
  • bottled
  • bottleneck
  • bottling
  • bottlenose
  • bluebottle
  • bottlebrush
  • bottleful
  • bottlenosed
  • Aristotlean
  • bottlo
  • bottlewasher
  • greenbottle
  • rebottle
  • bottleholder
  • arsey
  • bottlecap
  • bottlehead
  • bottlelike
  • arsewipe
  • bottlescrew
  • shortarse
  • arsesmart
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂er- →