Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “bugger” come from?

Bugger comes from English bugge, from Old French -er, from Latin -are, ultimately from Proto-Italic -os, though the original meaning is unknown.

bugger (English): A heretic; Someone who commits buggery; a...

Definitions

  1. A heretic; Someone who commits buggery; a...

Ancestry of “bugger”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-erA person or thing that does an action indicated...
2Middle English-eragentive suffix; agent noun suffix
3Old French-erAlternative form of -ier, verbal suffix;...
4Latin-āre—
5Proto-Italic-āōForms primarily denominative verbs
6Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
7Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
8Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
9Chichewaiyehe, she

Words derived from “bugger”

  • buggery
  • buggerer
  • buggeration
  • buggersome
  • antibuggery
  • embuggerance
  • bokker
Every word from Chichewa iye →