Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “chickenhawk” come from?

chickenhawk (English) comes from English hawk, from English hawker, from Middle Low German hȫker, from Old High German huchan, from Proto-Germanic *hūkan-, from Proto-Germanic *hūkkan-, from Proto-Germanic *huk(k)ōn-, from Proto-Indo-European *kuk-néh₂ — flare up, glow; white; to glow, burn, lighten.

chickenhawk (English): A draft dodger, especially in the Vietnam War,...

Definitions

  1. A draft dodger, especially in the Vietnam War,...

Ancestry of “chickenhawk”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishhawkA diurnal predatory bird of the family...
2EnglishhawkerA peddler, huckster, who travels about to sell...
3Middle Low Germanhȫkerpeddler
4Old High Germanhuchan—
5Proto-Germanic*hūkan-—
6Proto-Germanic*hūkkan-—
7Proto-Germanic*huk(k)ōn-—
8Proto-Indo-European*kuk-néh₂—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanḱewk-flare up, glow; white; to glow, burn, lighten

Words derived from “chickenhawk”

  • chicken hawk
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱewk- →