Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “cat” come from?

cat (Middle English) comes from Old English catt, from Proto-West Germanic *kattu.

cat (Middle English): cat

Definitions

  1. cat

Ancestry of “cat”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishcattcat
2Proto-West Germanic*kattu—

Words derived from “cat”

  • cat
  • cats
  • kitten
  • catfish
  • catwalk
  • copycat
  • catlike
  • catnip
  • catty
  • bobcat
  • tomcat
  • catbird
  • Kattegat
  • kittenish
  • catnap
  • cattery
  • catfight
  • cathead
  • catmint
  • cathouse
  • hellcat
  • catcall
  • housecat
  • chatoyant
Every word from Proto-West Germanic *kattu →