Where does “nhát cáy” come from?

nhát cáy (Vietnamese) comes from Vietnamese cây, from Proto-Vietic gəl, from Proto-Mon-Khmer (d)kər — tree; plant; tree, plant.

nhát cáy (Vietnamese): extremely cowardly; chicken; chickenshit

Definitions

  1. extremely cowardly; chicken; chickenshit

Ancestry of “nhát cáy”, step by step

nhát cáy traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Vietnamese cây

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesecâytree; plant; Short for cây số
2Proto-Vieticgəl—
3Proto-Mon-Khmer(d)kərtree; plant; tree, plant

via Vietnamese nhát

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesenhátshy; timid; easily scared; timorous; cowardly;...
Every word from Proto-Mon-Khmer (d)kər →Every word from Proto-Vietic gəl →Every word from Vietnamese cây →