cup

cup · noun, verb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European*kewp-
2. Latincūpa
3. Frankish*koppinflu.?
4. Late Latincuppabor.?
5. Proto-Indo-European*gew-
6. Proto-Germanic*kuppaz?
7. Old Englishcuppe
8. Proto-Germanic*kuppaz
9. Old Englishcopp
10. Middle Englishcuppe, coppe
11. English todaycup

Inherited from Middle English cuppe, coppe, from the merger of Old English cuppe (“cup”) and Old English copp (“cup, vessel”). Old English cuppe is a borrowing from Late Latin cuppa, itself of obscure origin, but probably from earlier Latin cūpa (“tub, cask”), from Proto-Indo-European *kewp- (“a hollow”). Old English copp, however, is from Proto-West Germanic *kopp (“round object, bowl, vessel, knoll, summit, crown of the head”), from Proto-Germanic *kuppaz, from Proto-Indo-European *gew- (“to bend, curve, arch”) (whence also obsolete English cop (“top, summit, crown of the head”), German Kopf (“top, head”)). The Middle English word was further reinforced by Anglo-Norman cupe and Old French cope, coupe, from Latin cuppa. Compare also Saterland Frisian Kop (“cup”), West Frisian kop (“cup”), Dutch kop (“cup”), German Low German Koppke, Köppke (“cup”), Danish kop (“cup”), Swedish kopp (“cup”). Doublet of coupe, hive, and keeve.

Cup · proper noun, noun²

Capitalization of cup

Words from the same roots