Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “dud” come from?

Dud comes from Middle English dudde, from Old English dudda, of unknown origin.

dud (English): A device or machine that is useless because it...

Definitions

  1. A device or machine that is useless because it...

Ancestry of “dud”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishduddecloak, mantle, kind of cloth; ragged clothing or...
2Old Englishdudda—
3Old English-ingForming nouns from verbs, indicating action,...
4Old English-tūn—
5Old Englishtūnenclosure, yard; place; dwelling
6Proto-West Germanictūnfence
7Proto-Germanictūnąfence; enclosure
8Gaulishdunumfort; hill, hillfort
9Proto-Celticdūnomstronghold, rampart
10Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewh₂-smoke; mist, haze

Words derived from “dud”

  • duds
  • dudder
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂- →