Etymology

cam

C3A1M3

Today it means: A turning or sliding piece which imparts motion to a rod, lever or block brought into sliding or rolling contact with it. Full definition →

Dutch kam
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cam · noun1

  1. Dutch · derived fromkam“cog of a wheel; originally, comb”
  2. English todaycam

PIE word *ǵómbʰos Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ǵembʰ- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *ǵómbʰos Proto-Germanic *kambaz Proto-West Germanic ᚲᚨᛒᚨ Proto-West Germanic *kamb Old Dutch *kamb Middle Dutch kamp Dutch kamder. English cam Recorded since the 16th century, from Dutch kam (“cog of a wheel; originally, comb”) (cognate with English comb, and preserved in modern Dutch compounds such as kamrad, kamwiel (“cog wheel”)). Doublet of comb.

cam · noun, verb2

Clipping of camera.

Cam · proper noun3

A back-formation from Cambridge; compare Middle English Cante and New Latin Camus, Chamus.

Cam · proper noun4

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*(s)kambo-“crooked”
  2. Proto-Celtic · derived from*kambos
  3. Old English · inherited from*Camme
  4. Middle English · inherited fromCamme
  5. English todayCam

Inherited from Middle English Camme, Camne, from Old English *Camme, ultimately from a Celtic word for "crooked," Proto-Celtic *kambos, from late Proto-Indo-European *(s)kambo- (“crooked”), shared with Ancient Greek σκαμβός (skambós).

Cam · proper noun5

Shortening.

Words from the same roots

Proto-Celtic*kambos all →

changekamKempstonKemptencamous

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.