Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “cheekbone” come from?

Cheekbone comes from Middle English chekebon, from Old English ċēacbān, a compound of the bone of the cheek.

cheekbone (English): The small prominent bone of the cheek

Definitions

  1. The small prominent bone of the cheek

Ancestry of “cheekbone”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishBône—
2Middle Englishbonbone
3Old Englishbānbone, tusk; the bone of a limb
4Arabicبانto separate, to become distinct, to sunder; to be...
5Ottoman Turkishبانban; keeper, tender, ward; ben tree, horseradish...
6Ottoman Turkishباڭ—
7Persianبنگhashish, narcotic made from "Cannabis sativa";...
8Middle Persian𐭡𐭭𐭢henbane

Words derived from “cheekbone”

  • cheekboned
  • cheekbony
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