Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “kick” come from?

Kick comes from Middle English kiken, from Old Dutch kīkan, from Proto-Germanic bukkaz, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root bʰōw-.

kick (English): To strike or hit with the foot or other extremity...

Definitions

  1. To strike or hit with the foot or other extremity...

Ancestry of “kick”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Englishkick the bucketTo die; Of a machine, to break down such that it...
2EnglishbucketA container made of rigid material, often with a...
3Middle Englishboket—
4Anglo-Normanbukettub, pail; bucket
5Old Frenchbucabdomen; object with a cavity; trunk, torso;...
6Latinbuccushe-goat
7Frankishbukkmale goat; buck, goat; buck, male goat
8Proto-Germanic*bukkaz—
9Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰuǵ-buck, he-goat
10Proto-North CaucasianbVχc̣V—
11Proto-North CaucasianbVc̣Vyoung he-goat

Words derived from “kick”

  • kicking
  • kicks
  • kicker
  • kickback
  • kickboxing
  • kickball
  • kickstand
  • antikickback
  • kickboard
  • kicky
  • dropkick
  • kickflip
  • kickable
  • kecks
  • kickabout
  • shitkicker
  • kickbox
  • placekick
  • kickee
  • kicketh
  • goalkicking
  • kickdown
  • kickplate
  • goalkicker
Every word from Proto-North Caucasian bVc̣V →