Etymology dictionary

crucible (n.) — cul-de-sac (n.)

crucible (n.)

early 15c., crusible, "vessel or melting pot for chemical purposes, so tempered as to endure extreme heat," from Medieval Latin crucibulum "melting pot for metals," originally "night lamp." First element might be Middle High German kruse "earthen pot." Or perhaps it is from Latin crux on some fancied resemblance to a cross. Used figuratively of any severe test or trial since 1640s.

cruciferous (adj.)

"bearing a cross," 1650s, from Late Latin crucifer "cross-bearing," from Latin crux (genitive crucis) "stake, cross" (see crux). Originally in literal senses; botanical use (in reference to a symmetrical arrangement of four petals) is from 1851.

crucify (v.)

mid-14c., "to put to death by nailing or otherwise affixing to a cross," from Old French crucifer crucefiier (12c., Modern French crucifier), from Vulgar Latin *crucificare, from Late Latin crucifigere "to fasten to a cross," from cruci, dative of Latin crux "cross" (see crux) + figere "to fasten, fix" (from PIE root *dheigw- "to stick, fix").

An ancient mode of capital punishment considered especially ignominious by the Romans and Greeks and reserved in general for slaves and highway robbers. In scripture, "subdue, mortify" (the flesh, etc.), early 14c. Figurative sense of "to torment" is from 1620s. Related: Crucified; crucifying.

crucifix (n.)

"a cross or representation of a cross with the crucified figure of Christ upon in," early 13c., from Old French crucefix (12c., Modern French crucifix), from Latin cruci fixus "(one) fixed to the cross" (see crucify).

crucifixion (n.)

"the putting to death of Christ on the hill of Calvary," early 15c., crucifixioun, from Late Latin crucifixionem (nominative crucifixio), noun of action from past-participle stem of crucifigere "kill by crucifixion; fasten to a cross" (see crucify).

cruciform (adj.)

"cross-shaped," 1660s, from Modern Latin cruciformis, from Latin crux (genitive crucis) "stake, cross" (see crux) + forma "form, shape" (see form (n.)).

cruciverbalist (n.)

"maker of crossword puzzles," by 1977, mock-Latin, coined in English from Latin cruci-, combining form of crux "cross" (see crux) + verbum "word" (see verb).

crud (n.)

U.S. slang; said in "Dictionary of American Slang" to be originally 1920s army and 1930s college student slang for "venereal disease." Thus by 1940, "dirty, disreputable person," and by 1950, "undesirable impurity." By 1945 (with various modifiers) it was the G.I.'s name for disease of any and every sort."

Perhaps this word is a continuation of crud as the old metathesis variant of curd (q.v.), which would make it an unconscious return to the original Middle English form of that word. Century Dictionary (1897) has crud only in the sense "Obsolete or dialectal form of curd."

crude (adj.)

late 14c., "in a raw or unprepared state" (of coarse bread or untanned hide), from Latin crudus "rough; not cooked, raw, bloody," from PIE *krue-do-, from PIE root *kreue- "raw flesh." Meaning "lacking grace, socially unrefined" is attested by 1640s. Related: Crudely; crudeness. Crude oil, which is in its natural state and unrefined, is from 1865.

crudites (n.)

"mixed raw vegetables as a hors d'oeuvre," 1960, from French crudités, literally "raw things" (see crudity).

crudity (n.)

early 15c., of food, "quality of producing unnatural humors," from Old French crudité (14c.) and directly from Latin cruditatem (nominative cruditas) "indigestion," from crudus "rough; not cooked, raw, bloody" (see crude). From 1620s as "that which is crude;" 1630s as "quality or state of being crude."

cruel (adj.)

c. 1200, "stern;" early 13c., of suffering, death, etc., "attended by much distress;" c. 1300, "inclined or willing to make another suffer, disposed to inflict suffering, mental or physical, on any sentient being," from Old French cruel (12c.), earlier crudel, from Latin crudelis "rude, unfeeling; cruel, hard-hearted," related to crudus "rough, raw, bloody" (see crude). Related: Cruelly.

Latin medial -d- began to disappear 10c. in French: compare chance/cadentia, cheoir/cadere, joyeux/gaudiosus, juif/judaeus, moyen/medianus, obéir/obedire, séance/sedentia.

cruelty (n.)

c. 1200, cruelte, "indifference to, or pleasure taken in, the distress or suffering of any sentient being," from Old French crualté (12c., Modern French cruauté), from Latin crudelitatem (nominative crudelitas) "cruelty," from crudelis "rude, unfeeling; cruel, hard-hearted," related to crudus "rough, raw, bloody" (see crude). Meaning "a cruel act" is from late 14c.

cruet (n.)

"small glass bottle for vinegar, oil, sacramental wine, etc.," c. 1300, probably an Anglo-French diminutive of Old French crue "an earthen pot," which is from Frankish *kruka or some other Germanic source (compare Old High German kruog, Old English cruce "jug, pot, pitcher"); related to crock.

cruise (v.)

"sail to and fro or from place to place," 1650s, from Dutch kruisen "to cross, sail to and fro," from kruis "cross," from Latin crux. Compare the sense evolution in cognate cross (v.). Related: Cruised; cruising.

As a noun from 1706, "a voyage taken in courses;" by 1906 as "voyage taken by tourists on a ship."

cruiser (n.)

1670s, "one who or that which cruises," agent noun from cruise (v.), or, probably, borrowed from similar words in continental languages (such as Dutch kruiser, French croiseur). In older use, a warship built to cruise and protect commerce of the state to which it belongs or chase hostile ships (but in 18c. often applied to privateers).

Meaning "one who cruises for sex partners" is from 1903, in later use mostly of homosexuals; as a boxing weight class, from 1920; meaning "police patrol car" is 1929, American English.

cruller (n.)

kind of doughnut fried crisp in boiling lard, 1805, American English, apparently from Dutch kruller, from krullen "to curl," from Middle Dutch crullen, which is cognate with curl (v.). Compare Frisian krillen, Swedish krulla; also Middle English crullen "to curl (the hair)."

crumb (n.)

Middle English crome, crumme, from Old English cruma "fragment of bread or other food, a morsel, small fragment," from a West Germanic root of obscure origin (compare Middle Dutch crume, Dutch kruim, German Krume); perhaps from a PIE word for "small particle of bread" and cognate with Greek grumea "bag or chest for old clothes" (Beekes writes: "In origin, the word probably denoted small things of little value, later also the chest, etc.), Albanian grime.

The unetymological -b- appeared mid-15c., in part by analogy with words like dumb. Slang meaning "lousy person" is 1918, from crumb, U.S. slang for "body-louse" (1863), which were so called from resemblance.

crumby (adj.)

"full of crumbs," 1731, from crumb + -y (2). Overlapping somewhat with crummy, but generally restricted to the more literal senses.

crumble (v.)

late 15c., kremelen, "to break into small fragments" (transitive), from Old English *crymelan, presumed frequentative of gecrymman "to break into crumbs," from cruma (see crumb). Intransitive sense of "fall into small pieces" is from 1570s.

The -b- is from 16c., probably on analogy of crumb (where it also is an unetymological intrusion) or of French-derived words like humble, where it belongs. Related: Crumbled; crumbling. Old English gecrymman yielded Middle English crimen "to crumble" (transitive).

As a noun, from 1570s as "a fragment," from 1947 in cookery as dessert dish with a crumb topping, British English. "The technique itself seems to have been a product of Second World War culinary making-do" [Ayto, "Diner's Dictionary"].

crummy (adj.)

1560s, "easily crumbled;" 1570s, "like bread," from crumb + -y (2). Slang meaning "shoddy, filthy, inferior, poorly made" was in use by 1859, probably from the first sense, but influenced by crumb in its slang sense of "louse." The "like bread" sense probably accounts for 18c. (and later in dialects) use, of a woman, "attractively plump, full-figured, buxom." Related: Crummily; crumminess.

crumpet (n.)

sort of tea-cake, 1690s, perhaps from crompid cake "wafer," literally "curled-up cake" (1382; Wyclif's rendering of Hebrew raqiq in Exodus xxix.23), from crompid, past participle of crumpen "curl up" (see crumple (v.)). Alternative etymology is from Celtic (compare Breton krampoez "thin, flat cake"). Slang meaning "woman regarded as a sex object" is first recorded 1936.

crumple (v.)

early 14c., cromplen, crumplen, "press into irregular folds, rumple, wrinkle," also intransitive, "contract into wrinkles, shrink, shrivel," frequentative of crumpen "to curl up" (from Old English crump "bent, crooked"), from Proto-Germanic *krumbo- "to press, squeeze, compress" (source also of German krumm "crooked, warped"). Related: Crumpled; crumpling.

crunch (v.)

1814, "crush with the teeth," a variant of craunch (1630s), which probably is of imitative origin. Meaning "act or proceed with a sound of crunching" is by 1849. Related: Crunched; crunching.

The noun is 1836, "an act of crunching," from the verb; the sense of "critical moment" was popularized 1939 by Winston Churchill, who had used it in his 1938 biography of Marlborough.

crunchy (adj.)

1892, from crunch (n.) + -y (2). Student slang sense of "annoyingly intense about health or environmental issues" is by 1990, short for crunchy granola (considered a natural and wholesome food) used as an adjective. It could be neutral or positive at first, but later often was dismissive. Related: Crunchiness.

crunk (n.)

style of popular music developed in U.S. South in 1990s, by 1999; often said to be a slang contraction of crazy drunk; the identical word was used early in a slang sense of "cool, good."

crusade (v.)

1732, "to engage in a crusade," from crusade (n.). The usual way to express this in Middle English seems to have been take the cross (c. 1300). Related: Crusaded; crusading.

crusade (n.)

"military expedition under the banner of the cross," 1706, a respelling or replacement of croisade (1570s), from French croisade (16c.), Spanish cruzada, both from Medieval Latin cruciata, past participle of cruciare "to mark with a cross," from Latin crux (genitive crucis) "cross" (see crux).

The modern English form is comparatively late, and even the earlier croisade is post-Middle English (French croisade replaced earlier croisée). Middle English nouns were croiserie (c. 1300), creiserie.

Especially in reference to the medieval expeditions undertaken by European Christians for recovery of the Holy Land from Muslims. Generally they are counted as seven between 1095 and 1271, but some smaller efforts (e.g. the "Children's Crusade") are omitted and the word sometimes is extended to other religiously motivated expeditions (e.g. against the Albigenses or the Prussians). Figurative sense of "vigorous campaign for a moral cause or against a public evil" is from 1786.

crusader (n.)

person engaged in a crusade, 1743, from crusade (n.) + -er (1). Earlier was croisader, from French croisadeur. In Middle English a crusader might be called a pilgrim.

cruse (n.)

"small vessel for liquids," late 13c., of uncertain origin; perhaps in Old English, or perhaps from Old Norse krus "pot, tankard," both apparently from a general Germanic root (compare Middle Dutch cruese, Dutch kroes "cup, pot, mug," Middle Low German krus, Danish krus "mug, jug," German Krause "jug, mug") of uncertain connection.

crush (v.)

mid-14c., "smash, shatter, break into fragments or small particles; force down and bruise by heavy weight," also figuratively, "overpower, subdue," from Old French cruissir (Modern French écraser), variant of croissir "to gnash (teeth), crash, smash, break," which is perhaps from Frankish *krostjan "to gnash" (cognates: Gothic kriustan, Old Swedish krysta "to gnash").

Figurative sense of "to humiliate, demoralize" is by c. 1600. Related: Crushed; crushing; crusher. Italian crosciare, Catalan cruxir, Spanish crujir "to crack, creak" are Germanic loan-words.

crush (n.)

1590s, "act of crushing, a violent collision or rushing together," from crush (v.). Meaning "thick crowd" is from 1806. Sense of "person one is infatuated with" is first recorded 1884, U.S. slang; to have a crush on (someone) is by 1903.

crust (n.)

early 14c., "hard outer part of bread," from Old French crouste (13c., Modern French croûte) and directly from Latin crusta "rind, crust, shell, bark," from PIE *krus-to- "that which has been hardened," suffixed form of root *kreus- "to begin to freeze, form a crust." From mid-15c. as "any hard, external portion of comparative thinness;" meaning "outer shell of the earth" is from 1550s.

crust (v.)

late 14c., "to thicken or contract into a hard covering" (intransitive); see crust (n.). From 1540s in transitive sense of "cover with a crust or hard exterior portion." Related: Crusted; crusting.

Crustacea (n.)

arthropod class, 1814, Modern Latin neuter plural of crustaceus (animalia), literally "having a crust or shell," from Latin crusta "crust, rind, bark, hard shell" (from PIE root *kreus- "to begin to freeze, form a crust;" also see -a (2)). Taken as a zoological classification by Lamarck, 1801; Cuvier (1798) had les insectes crustacées.

crustacean (n.)

an animal of the class Crustacea, 1835; see Crustacea + -an. As an adjective, "of or pertaining to an animal of the class Crustacea," 1858 (an earlier adjective was crustaceous, "pertaining to crust, crust-like," 1640s).

crustation (n.)

"an incrustation; an act of crusting over," 1650s, noun of action or state from crust (v.).

crusty (adj.)

c. 1400, "scabby, like a crust, hard," from crust (n.) + -y (2). Figurative use, of persons, "short-tempered, surly, peevish" is from 1560s.

crutch (n.)

Middle English crucche, "a support for the lame in walking consisting of a staff of proper length with a crosspiece at one end shaped to fit conveniently under the armpit," from Old English crycce "crutch, staff," from Proto-Germanic *krukjo (source also of Old Saxon krukka, Middle Dutch crucke, Old High German krucka, German Kröcke "crutch," related to Old Norse krokr "hook;" see crook (n.)).

Figurative sense of "a prop, a support" is first recorded c. 1600. As a verb, from 1640s.

Century Dictionary writes, "Akin to crook, with which in the Romance languages its derivatives are mingled" (Italian gruccia "crutch," crocco "hook" are Germanic loan-words).

crux (n.)

1814, "a cross," from Latin crux "cross," a word of uncertain origin. Sometimes said to be cognate with Irish cruach "heap, hill," Gaulish *krouka "summit," Old Norse hryggr "backbone," Old English hrycg "back." But de Vaan is suspicious:

The figurative use for "a central difficulty" (1718) is older in English than the literal sense; perhaps it is from Latin crux interpretum "a point in a text that is impossible to interpret," the literal meaning of which is something like "crossroads of interpreters." But Century Dictionary ascribes it to "the cross as an instrument of torture; hence anything that puzzles or vexes in a high degree ...." Extended sense of "central point" is attested by 1888.

crying (adj.)

late 14c., "roaring, shouting;" 1590s, "wailing, weeping," present-participle adjective from cry (v.). Sense of "demanding attention or remedy" is from c. 1600. U.S. colloquial expression of disgust, impatience, etc., for crying out loud, is by 1921, probably a euphemism for for Christ's sake.

cry (v.)

mid-13c., "yell (something) out, utter" (transitive); c. 1300, "beg, implore; speak earnestly and loudly; advertise by calling out," from Old French crier, from Vulgar Latin *critare, from Latin quiritare "to wail, shriek" (source of Italian gridare, Old Spanish cridar, Spanish and Portuguese gritar), which is of uncertain origin.

Perhaps it is a variant of quirritare "to squeal like a pig," from *quis, echoic of squealing. Ancient folk etymology explained it as "to call for the help of the Quirites," the Roman constabulary.

The meaning was extended 13c. to the sense "shed tears" that had formerly been in weep, which it largely replaced by 16c., via the notion of "utter a loud, vehement, inarticulate sound." To cry (one's) eyes out "weep inordinately" is by 1704.

Most languages, in common with English, use the general word for "cry out, shout, wail" to also mean "weep, shed tears to express pain or grief." Romance and Slavic, however, use words for this whose ultimate meaning is "beat (the breast)," compare French pleurer, Spanish llorar, both from Latin plorare "cry aloud," but probably originally plodere "beat, clap the hands." Also Italian piangere (cognate with French plaindre "lament, pity") from Latin plangere, originally "beat," but especially of the breast, as a sign of grief. Related: Cried; crying.

cry (n.)

late 13c., "an announcement, proclamation;" c. 1300, "any loud or passionate utterance; any loud or inarticulate sound from a human or beast," also "entreaty, prayer," from cry (v.). By 1852 as "a fit of weeping;" from 1540s as "word or phrase used in battle." From 1530s as "the yelping of hounds in the chase."

The notion in far cry "a great distance, a long way" seems to be "calling distance;" compare out of cry "out of calling distance" (mid-14c.); within cry of "within calling distance" (1630s). Far cry itself seems to have been a Scottish phrase popularized by Scott ("Rob Roy," 1817), which notes that "The expression of a 'far cry to Lochow,' was proverbial."

crybaby (n.)

also cry-baby, derisive word for one who cries too easily or too much, 1851, American English, from cry + baby (n.).

cryo-

word-forming element meaning "very cold, freezing," from Latinized form of Greek kryos "icy cold," related to kryeros "chilling" (from PIE root *kreus- "to begin to freeze, form a crust").

cryogenic (adj.)

"of or involving very low temperatures," 1896, from cryo- "freezing" + -genic "having to do with production" (from PIE root *gene- "give birth, beget"). Cryogen "freezing mixture, that which produces cold" is attested from 1875. Related: Cryogenics (1958).

crypt (n.)

early 15c., cripte, "grotto, cavern," from Latin crypta "vault, cavern," from Greek krypte "a vault, crypt" (short for krypte kamara "hidden vault"), fem. of kryptos "hidden," verbal adjective from kryptein "to hide," which is of uncertain origin. Comparison has been made to Old Church Slavonic kryjo, kryti "to hide," Lithuanian kráuti "to pile up." Beekes writes that krypto "is formally and semantically reminiscent of [kalypto]; the verbs may have influenced each other." For this, see calypto-. But he adds, "However, since there is no good IE etymology, the word could be Pre-Greek." Meaning "underground burial vault or chapel in a church" is attested by 1789.

cryptarchy (n.)

"secret government," 1798; see crypto- + -archy.

cryptic (adj.)

1630s, "hidden, occult, mystical," from Late Latin crypticus, from Greek kryptikos "fit for concealing," from kryptos "hidden" (see crypt). Meaning "mysterious, enigmatic" is attested by 1920. Related: Cryptically.

crypto-

before vowels crypt-, word-forming element meaning "secret" or "hidden, not evident or obvious," used in forming English words at least since 1760 (crypto-Calvinianism), from Latinized form of Greek kryptos "hidden, concealed, secret" (see crypt; the Greek combining form was krypho-).

In 19c. often of secret religious faith; from 1870s in scientific words; since c. 1945 typically of hidden political loyalties. Crypto-fascist is attested from 1937; crypto-communist from 1946. Hence, as an abstracted noun, crypto "person who conceals a political adherence" (1946).

cryptogram (n.)

"a message or writing in secret characters or code," 1849, from crypto- "secret, hidden" + gram "word, letter." A modern word coined in English; though the elements are Greek, the ancient Greeks would find the construction barbarous. Cryptograph in the same sense was used from 1849.

cryptograph (n.)

1849, "something written in secret characters;" see crypto- "secret, hidden" + -graph "writing, something written." From 1879 as "system of secret writing."

cryptography (n.)

1650s, "art of writing in secret characters," from French cryptographie or directly from Modern Latin cryptographia, from Greek kryptos "hidden" (see crypt) + graphia (see -graphy). Related: Cryptographic; cryptographer.

cryptology (n.)

1640s, "secret or occult language," from crypto- "secret, hidden" + -ology. From 1945 as "science of secret characters or codes."

cryptonym (n.)

"private, secret, or hidden name," 1868 (by 1855 in German); from crypto- "secret, hidden" + -onym "name," from Greek (from PIE root *no-men-"name").

cryselephantine (adj.)

1827, from Greek khryselephantinos "of gold and ivory," applied to statues overlaid with gold and ivory, such as Athene Parthenos and Olympian Zeus.

crystallized (adj.)

c. 1600, "made into crystal;" 1660s, "formed into crystals," past-participle adjective from crystallize. Of fruit, etc., "preserved by sugar (and usually coated with sugar crystals), by 1875.

crystal (n.)

formerly also cristal, and, erroneously, chrystal, Old English cristal "clear ice; clear, transparent mineral," from Old French cristal (12c., Modern French crystal), from Latin crystallus "crystal, ice," from Greek krystallos, from kryos "frost," from PIE root *kreus- "to begin to freeze, form a crust."

The spelling adopted the Latin form 15c.-17c. The mineral has been so-called since Anglo-Saxon times; it was regarded by the ancients as a sort of petrified ice. In the specific sense in chemistry, "body with a molecular structure that causes it to take the form of a regular solid enclosed by a certain number of plane surfaces," from 1620s.

A top-20 name for girls born in the U.S. between 1978 and 1984. As a shortened form of crystal-glass it dates from 1590s. As an adjective, from late 14c. Crystal ball is from 1794. Rock-crystal is the general name for transparent crystals of quartz. Crystal Palace was the name of the large building, made chiefly of glass and iron, for the universal exhibition of 1851 in London's Hyde Park.

crystallization (n.)

"process by which molecules of a substance in liquid or vapor form unite and become solid, 1660s, noun of action from crystallize. Figurative use is attested by 1842.

crystallize (v.)

1590s, "convert into crystal;" 1660s "form into crystals;" from crystal + -ize. Intransitive sense of "be converted into crystals" is from 1640s. Figurative use, of opinions, love, etc., that are at first indeterminate, "assume a definite form and fixity," is from 1660s. Related: Crystallized; crystallizing.

crystalline (adj.)

late 14c., "made of or like crystal;" c. 1400, "resembling crystal, pure, clear, transparent," from Old French cristalin "like crystal" (Modern French crystallin) and directly from Latin crystallinus, from Greek krystallinos "of crystal," from krystallos (see crystal). Related: Crystallinity.

crystallisation (n.)

chiefly British English spelling of crystallization; for spelling, see -ize.

crystallography (n.)

"science of the process of crystallization and of the forms and structures of crystals," 1802, from French crystallographie (1772); see crystal + -graphy. Related: Crystallographic; crystallographer.

crystallomancy (n.)

"divination by means of crystals," 1610s; see crystal + -mancy.

cteno-

word-forming element used in biological and zoological compounds, from Latinized form of Greek ktenidion "a little comb," diminutive of kteis "comb," from PIE root *pekt-en- "comb" (source also of Latin pecten "comb").

cub (n.)

1520s, cubbe "young fox," of unknown origin, not recorded in Middle English; perhaps from Old Irish cuib "whelp," or from Old Norse kobbi "seal." Extended to the young of bears, lions, etc., after 1590s. The native word was whelp. Cub Scout is from 1922.

Cuba

said to be from Taino (Arawakan) Cubanacan, the name of the people who occupied the island. Related: Cuban (1829), hence Cuban heel (1908); Cuban Missile Crisis (October 16-28, 1962).

cubby (n.)

1868, short for cubbyhole.

cubbyhole (n.)

"small, enclosed space," 1825, the first element possibly from a diminutive of cub "stall, pen, cattle shed, coop, hutch" (1540s), a dialect word with apparent cognates in Low German (such as East Frisian kubbing, Dutch kub). Or perhaps it is related to cuddy "small room, cupboard" (1793), originally "small cabin in a boat" (1650s), from Dutch kajuit, from French cahute. OED calls it "a nursery or children's name."

cube (n.)

1550s, "regular geometric body with six square faces," also "product obtained by multiplying the square of a quantity by the quantity itself," from French cube (13c.) and directly from Latin cubus, from Greek kybos "a six-sided die," used metaphorically of dice-like blocks of any sort, also "cake; piece of salted fish; vertebra," of uncertain origin. Beekes points out that "words for dice are often loans" and that "the Lydians claimed to have invented the game" of kybos.

The mathematical also was in the ancient Greek word: the Greeks threw with three dice; the highest possible roll was three sixes. The word was attested in English from late 14c. in Latin form. The 1960s slang sense of "extremely conventional person" (1959) is from the notion of a square squared. Cube-root is from 1550s (in Middle English this was simply a cubick).

cube (v.)

1580s in the mathematical sense "to raise to the third power" (in Middle English the verb was cubiken, mid-15c.); 1947 with the meaning "cut in cubes," from cube (n.). The Greek verbal derivatives from the noun all referred to dice-throwing and gambling. Related: Cubed; cubing.

cubic (adj.)

mid-15c., "being of the third power;" 1550s, "having the form of a cube," from Old French cubique (14c.), from Latin cubicus, from Greek kybikos, from kybos "cube" (see cube (n.)). Meaning "solid, three-dimensional" is from 1650s.

Cubical is attested from 1590s with the meaning "of or pertaining to a cube," and according to OED it is "Now more usual than cubic in this sense." Related: Cubically.

cubicle (n.)

mid-15c., "bedroom, bedchamber," from Latin cubiculum "bedroom," from cubare "to lie down," which is perhaps from a PIE *kub-, with cognates in Middle Welsh kyscu, Middle Cornish koska, Middle Breton cousquet "to sleep," but de Vaan regards the PIE origin of the Latin word as "uncertain." Compare cubit.

Obsolete from 16c. but revived by 1858 for "dormitory sleeping compartment," especially in an English public school. The sense of "any partitioned space" (such as a library carrel or, later, office work station) is attested by 1926. Related: Cubicular.

Cubism (n.)

"early 20c. revolutionary movement in visual arts characterized (at first) by simple geometric forms," 1911, from French cubisme, from cube (see cube (n.) + -ism). Said to have been coined by French art critic Louis Vauxcelles at the 1908 Salon des Indépendants in reference to a work by Georges Braque. Related: Cubist (by 1914 as an adjective, 1920 as a noun).

cubit (n.)

ancient unit of measure (usually from 18 to 22 inches) based on the forearm from elbow to fingertip, early 14c., from Latin cubitum, cubitus "the elbow, the forearm," generally regarded as a derivative of PIE *keu(b)- "to bend," but de Vaan finds this dubious based on the sense of the proposed cognates and the sound changes involved. Also compare cubicle.

Such a measure, known by a word meaning "forearm" or the like, was known to many peoples (compare Greek pekhys, Hebrew ammah, English ell).

The word also was used in English in the "forearm, part of the arm from the elbow downward" sense (early 15c.); hence cubital "as long as a cubit" (mid-15c.), also "pertaining to the forearm" (1610s).

cuboid (adj.)

"cube-like, resembling a cube in form," 1829, a modern coinage; see cube (n.) + -oid. As a noun, short for cuboid bone, by 1839. Related: Cuboidal.

cuck (v.1)

"to void excrement," mid-15c., cukken, from Old Norse kuka "feces," from PIE root *kakka- "to defecate." From 1610s as "to put in the cucking-stool." Related: Cucked; cucking.

cuck (v.2)

"make (someone) a cuckold," 2007, verb abstracted from cuckold. According to Partridge Dictionary of Slang, the word originated in fetish terminology, and by 2000 it is attested as a genre tag for internet erotica.

cucking-stool (n.)

early 13c., from verbal noun from cuck "to void excrement," from Old Norse kuka "feces," from PIE root *kakka- "to defecate." So called because they sometimes resembled the old close stool of the pre-plumbing days, a portable indoor toilet that looked like a chair with a box under the seat. Old folk etymology made the first element a corruption of cotquean. For second element, see stool. Also known as trebucket and castigatory, it was used on fraudulent tradesmen, in addition to disorderly women, either for public exposure to ridicule or for ducking.

cuckold (n.)

derisive name for a man whose wife is false to him, "husband of an adulteress," early 13c., kukewald, cokewold, from Old French cucuault, from cocu (see cuckoo) + pejorative suffix -ault, of Germanic origin. So called from the female bird's alleged habit of changing mates, or her authentic habit of leaving eggs in another bird's nest.

In Modern French the identity is more obvious: Coucou for the bird and cocu for the betrayed husband. German Hahnrei (13c.), from Low German, is of obscure origin. The second element seems to be connected to words for "ardent," and suggests perhaps "sexually aggressive hen," with transferal to humans, but Kluge suggests rather a connection to words for "capon" and "castrated." The female equivalent, cuckquean, is attested by 1560s.

cuckold (v.)

of a wife or her paramour, "to dishonor (a husband) by adultery," 1580s, from cuckold (n.). Related: Cuckolded; cuckolding.

cuckoldry (n.)

1520s, "adultery as affecting the honor of the husband," from cuckold (n.) + -ery.

cuckoo (n.)

European bird noted for its love-note cry and notorious for parasitism, c. 1300, cokkou (late 12c. as a surname), from Old French cocu "cuckoo," also "cuckold," echoic of the male bird's mating cry (compare Greek kokkyx, Latin cuculus, Middle Irish cuach, Sanskrit kokilas).

Slang adjectival sense of "crazy" is American English, 1918, but noun meaning "stupid person" is recorded by 1580s, perhaps from the bird's unvarying, oft-repeated call. The Old English name was ʒeac, cognate with Old Norse gaukr, source of Scottish and northern English gowk, which also has insulting senses. The Germanic words presumably originally were echoic, too, but had drifted in form. Cuckoo-clock is from 1789.

cucumber (n.)

"common running garden plant," cultivated from earliest times in many Old World countries, also the long, fleshy fruit of the plant, late 14c., cucomer, from Old French cocombre (13c., Modern French concombre), from Latin cucumerem (nominative cucumis), perhaps from a pre-Italic Mediterranean language. The Latin word also is the source of Italian cocomero, Spanish cohombro, Portuguese cogombro. Replaced Old English eorþæppla (plural), literally "earth-apples."

Cowcumber was the common form of the word in 17c.-18c., in good literary use and representing the modern evolution of the Middle English form. Cucumber is an attempted reversion to Latin. In 1790s the pronunciation "cowcumber" was standard except in western England dialects and "coocumber" was considered pedantic, but 30 years later, with the spread of literacy and education "cowcumber" was limited to the ignorant and old-fashioned.

It was planted as a garden vegetable by 1609 by Jamestown colonists. Short form cuke is attested by 1977. Phrase cool as a cucumber (c. 1732) embodies ancient folk knowledge confirmed by science in 1970: inside of a field cucumber on a warm day is 20 degrees cooler than the air temperature. The sea-cucumber (1841) is so called for the shape of some species.

cud (n.)

"portion of food voluntarily forced into the mouth by the stomach of a ruminating animal," Old English cudu "cud," also "gum, resin, mastic," earlier cwudu, from Proto-Germanic *kweduz "resin" (source also of Old Norse kvaða "resin," Old High German quiti "glue," German Kitt "putty").

cuddle (v.)

"hug, embrace so as to keep warm; lie close or snug," 1520s (implied in cudlyng), of uncertain origin. OED calls it "A dialectal or nursery word." Perhaps a variant or frequentative form of obsolete cull, coll "to embrace" (see collar (n.)); or perhaps from Middle English *couthelen, from couth "known," hence "comfortable with." It has a spotty early history and seems to have been a nursery word at first. Related: Cuddled; cuddling. As a noun, "a hug, an embrace," by 1825.

cuddly (adj.)

"cuddlesome, given to or inviting cuddles," 1863, from cuddle + -y (2).

cudgel (v.)

"to strike or beat with a cudgel," 1590s, from cudgel (n.). Related: Cudgeled; cudgeling.

cudgel (n.)

"short, thick stick used as a weapon," Old English cycgel "club with rounded head;" perhaps from PIE *geu- "to curve, bend."

cue (n.1)

"words spoken at the end of a speech in a play that are the signal for an answering speech," 1550s, of uncertain origin. By one theory it is a spelling out of Q, the letter, which was used 16c., 17c. in stage plays to indicate actors' entrances and was explained at the time as an abbreviation of Latin quando "when" (from PIE root *kwo-, stem of relative and interrogative pronouns) or a similar Latin adverb. Shakespeare's printed texts have it as both Q and cue. Cue as a name for "the letter Q" is attested from 1755.

Transferred to music by 1880. Figurative sense of "sign or hint to speak or act" is from 1560s. The television reader's cue-card is attested by 1948.

cue (n.2)

"tail, something hanging down," variant of queue (n.), ultimately from Latin cauda "tail." Meaning "long roll or plait of a wig or hair worn hanging down, a pigtail," is from 1731. Meaning "straight, tapering rod with a small soft pad, used in billiards," is by 1749. Hence cue-ball, the ball struck by the cue, recorded by 1881.

cue (v.)

1928, "provide or furnish with a (theatrical or musical) cue," from cue (n.1). Meaning "tie in a cue or tail" is from 1772, from cue (n.2). For "to stand in line" see the alternative spelling queue. Related: Cued, cueing.

cuff (n.)

"bottom of a sleeve," mid-14c., cuffe "hand covering, mitten, glove," perhaps from Medieval Latin cuffia, cuphia "head covering," which is of uncertain origin, perhaps ultimately from Greek.

Sense of "band around the sleeve" is first attested 1520s; sense of "turned-up hem of trousers" is by 1896. Meaning "a fetter for the wrist" is from 1660s. Adverbial phrase off the cuff "extemporaneously" is attested by 1938, American English colloquial, suggesting an actor or speaker reading from notes jotted on his shirt sleeves rather than reciting learned lines. Cuff-links (also cufflinks) is from 1887.

cuff (v.2)

"to strike with or as with the open hand," 1520s, of unknown origin, perhaps from Swedish kuffa "to thrust, push." Related: Cuffed; cuffing. As a noun, "a blow with the open hand," from 1560s.

cuff (v.1)

"to put a cuff on," 1690s, from cuff (n.). Related: Cuffed; cuffing.

Cuffy

also Cuffee, a characteristic name among slaves, by 1713. Also sometimes in 19c. "a black bear."

cui bono

a Latin phrase from Cicero. It means "to whom for a benefit," or "who profits by it?" not "to what good purpose? for what use or end?" as is sometimes said. From cui "to? for whom?," an old form preserved here in the dative form of the interrogative pronoun quis "who?" (from PIE root *kwo-, stem of relative and interrogative pronouns) + bono "good" (see bene-).

cuirass (n.)

"armor for the chest and back," mid-15c., curase, curasse, from Old French cuirace (15c.), from Late Latin coriacea vestis "garment of leather," from Latin corium "leather, hide" (see corium). Cognate with Italian corazza, Spanish coraza, Portuguese couraça. Related: Cuirassier "mounted soldier wearing a cuirass," 1620s; "the proper name of a certain type of heavy cavalry in European armies" [OED].

cuisine (n.)

"manner or style of cooking," 1786, from French cuisine "style of cooking," originally "kitchen; cooking, cooked food" (12c.), from Late Latin cocina, earlier coquina "kitchen," from Latin coquere "to cook," from PIE root *pekw- "to cook, ripen."

Culdee (n.)

member of an irregular monastic order of priests in the Middle Ages in the Celtic lands of the British Isles, mid-12c., from Old Irish céle de "anchorite," from cele "associate, companion," sometimes "servant" (compare ceilidh) + de "of God." Perhaps an attempt to translate Servus Dei or some other Latin term for "religious hermit." Related: Culdean.

cul-de-sac (n.)

1738, as an anatomical term, "a diverticulum ending blindly," from French cul-de-sac, literally "bottom of a sack," from Latin culus "bottom, backside, fundament" (see tutu). For first element, see tutu; for second element, see sack (n.1). Application to a street or alley which has no outlet at one end is by 1819.