Where does “hobby” come from?

hobby (Italian) comes from English hobby, from English hobby-horse, from Middle English hoby, from Albanian hobe, from Middle Low German hōpen, from Old Saxon hopon, from Proto-West Germanic hopōn — to hope, to expect.

hobby (Italian): hobby activity

Definitions

  1. hobby activity

Ancestry of “hobby”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishhobbyAn activity that one enjoys doing in one's spare...
2Englishhobby-horseAlternative spelling of hobby horse
3Middle Englishhoby—
4Albanianhobecatapult, sling
5Middle Low Germanhōpento hope
6Old Saxonhopon—
7Proto-West Germanichopōnto hope, to expect

Words derived from “hobby”

Every word from Proto-West Germanic hopōn →