Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “goat” come from?

Goat comes from Middle English gote, from Old Norse gata, from Proto-Germanic gatwǭ, from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰayd-, ultimately from the root ǵʰew-.

goat (English): A mammal, "Capra aegagrus hircus", and similar...

Definitions

  1. A mammal, "Capra aegagrus hircus", and similar...

Ancestry of “goat”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishTime—
2Middle Englishtymethyme; time; A specific duration or period of...
3Old Frenchthym—
4Latinthymumthyme; accusative singular of thymus
5Ancient Greekθύμονthyme
6Ancient GreekθύωI offer in sacrifice, slay, burn, immolate; I...
7Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewh₂-smoke; mist, haze

Words derived from “goat”

  • goats
  • scapegoat
  • goatee
  • goatskin
  • goatish
  • goateed
  • goatsucker
  • goaty
  • goatlike
  • goatfish
  • goating
  • goatherder
  • goatgrass
  • goatling
  • goatweed
  • scapegoatism
  • goathair
  • goatmeat
  • goatishness
  • goathouse
  • antigoat
  • goatpox
  • scapegoater
  • goatly
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂- →