Where does “rats” come from?
rats (French) comes from French rat, from Middle French rat, from Old French rat, from Old High German rato, from Proto-Germanic ratō, from Proto-Germanic rattaz, from Proto-Indo-European Hreh₃d- — to scrape.
rats (French): plural of rat
Ancestry of “rats”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | French | rat | rat; sweetheart; scrooch |
| 2 | Middle French | rat | rat |
| 3 | Old French | rat | rat |
| 4 | Old High German | rato | rat |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | ratō | — |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | rattaz | rat |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | Hreh₃d- | to scrape |