Where does “kick-ass” come from?
kick-ass (English) comes from English kick, from English kick the bucket, from English bucket, from Middle English boket, from Anglo-Norman buket, from Old French buc, from Latin buccus, from Frankish bukk — young he-goat.
kick-ass (English): Rough, aggressive; powerful and successful
Definitions
- Rough, aggressive; powerful and successful
Ancestry of “kick-ass”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | kick | To strike or hit with the foot or other extremity... |
| 2 | English | kick the bucket | To die; Of a machine, to break down such that it... |
| 3 | English | bucket | A container made of rigid material, often with a... |
| 4 | Middle English | boket | bucket |
| 5 | Anglo-Norman | buket | tub, pail; bucket |
| 6 | Old French | buc | abdomen; object with a cavity; trunk, torso;... |
| 7 | Latin | buccus | he-goat |
| 8 | Frankish | bukk | male goat; buck, goat; buck, male goat |
| 9 | Proto-Germanic | *bukkaz | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰuǵ- | buck, he-goat |
| 11 | Proto-North Caucasian | bVχc̣V | — |
| 12 | Proto-North Caucasian | bVc̣V | young he-goat |