Etymology

currant

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Today it means: A small dried grape, usually the Black Corinth grape. Full definition →

French raisin de Corinthe
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currant · noun1

  1. French · borrowed fromraisin de Corinthe
  2. English todaycurrant

Borrowed from French raisin de Corinthe (literally “grapes of Corinth, the city in Greece”). Cognate with Dutch krent. Doublet of Corinth.

Currant · proper noun2

  1. Old French · derived fromcourant
  2. English todayCurrant

Anglicized form of Old French courant, present participle of courir (“to run”), hence a nickname for a hunter.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.