Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “teak” come from?

Teak comes from Portuguese teca, derived from Malayalam തേക്കു്, a word for the tropical hardwood tree.

teak (English): An extremely durable timber highly valued for...

Definitions

  1. An extremely durable timber highly valued for...

Ancestry of “teak”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Portuguesetecateak
2Latinthēca—
3Ancient Greekθήκηbox, chest; grave, tomb; sword sheath
4Ancient GreekτίθημιI put, place, set; I make, cause to be; I make
5Proto-Indo-Europeandʰeh₁-to do, put, place

Words derived from “teak”

  • teakwood
  • nonteak
  • チーク
  • tíkfa
  • టేకు
  • టేకు చెట్టు
  • టేకు కలప
  • tique
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰeh₁- →