Where does “毛虫” come from?

毛虫 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 毛, from Middle Chinese 毛.

毛虫 (Japanese): a hairy caterpillar

Definitions

  1. a hairy caterpillar

Ancestry of “毛虫”, step by step

毛虫 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 毛

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese毛hair, fur; a kind of unit
2Middle Chinese毛—

via Japanese 虫

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese虫a bug, insect, worm; a serpent, snake; a worm
Every word from Middle Chinese 毛 →Every word from Japanese 毛 →