Where does “canard” come from?
Canard entered English from French canard, a word for duck that traces through Middle French canard and Old French quanart to Old French cane, ultimately deriving from Latin canna, Ancient Greek κάννα, Proto-Indo-European kert-, and Sumerian 𒄀𒈾.
canard (English): A false or misleading report or story, especially...
Definitions
- A false or misleading report or story, especially...
Ancestry of “canard”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | French | canard | duck; drake; canard, hoax |
| 2 | Middle French | canard | duck, male duck |
| 3 | Old French | quanart | duck |
| 4 | Old French | cane | tube |
| 5 | Middle Low German | kāne | — |
| 6 | Old Saxon | *kano | — |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | kanō | to sing |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | kanô | vessel, vat, tub; boat |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | gan- | a vessel, tub; a vessel, vat, tub |