Where does “table cloth” come from?

table cloth (Middle English) comes from Middle English bordcloth, from Old English bordclāþ — tablecloth.

Ancestry of “table cloth”, step by step

table cloth traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle English bordcloth

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishbordclothtablecloth; A cloth sitting on an altar
2Old Englishbordclāþtablecloth

via Middle English bord cloth

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishbord clothAlternative form of bordcloth
Every word from Old English bordclāþ →
table cloth — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer