Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “bucks” come from?

Bucks derives from Middle Dutch bucken, Old English bucc, and ultimately Proto-Indo-European bʰōw- and bʰuǵ-, with origins unclear.

bucks (English): plural of buck; API pl; Casual oxford shoes made...

Definitions

  1. plural of buck; API pl; Casual oxford shoes made...

Ancestry of “bucks”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishbuckA male deer, antelope, sheep, goat, rabbit, hare,...
2Middle Englishbukkemale goat; male deer or roe
3Old Englishbūcbelly, stomach; belly, stomach, pitcher; belly,...
4Proto-West Germanic*būk—
5Proto-Germanicbūkazbelly, abdomen; body
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰōw-to inflate, swell; to swell, grow, thrive, be,...

Words derived from “bucks”

  • megabucks
  • baks
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰōw- →