Where does “kingfish” come from?

kingfish (English) comes from English King, from Middle English king, from Old English cyning, from Old English tūn, from Proto-West Germanic tūn, from Proto-Germanic tūną, from Gaulish dunum, from Proto-Celtic dūnom — smoke; mist, haze.

kingfish (English): Any of several food fishes of the genus...

Definitions

  1. Any of several food fishes of the genus...

Ancestry of “kingfish”, step by step

kingfish traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English King

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishKingradiotelephony clear-code word for the letter K
2Middle Englishkingking monarch
3Old Englishcyningking
4Old Englishtūnenclosure, yard; place; dwelling
5Proto-West Germanictūnfence
6Proto-Germanictūnąfence; enclosure
7Gaulishdunumfort; hill, hillfort
8Proto-Celticdūnomstronghold, rampart
9Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewh₂-smoke; mist, haze

via English Fish

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishFishThe constellation and zodiacal sign Pisces
2Old Englishfiscianto fish
3Proto-West Germanicfiskōnto fish, to catch fish
4Proto-Germanicfiskōnąto fish, to catch fish
5Proto-Germanic-ōnąCreates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates...
6Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
7Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
8Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-
9Chichewaiyehe, she
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂-Every word from Proto-Celtic dūnomEvery word from Gaulish dunum