Etymology

dunnock

D2U1N1N1O1C3K5

Today it means: A small European and Asian passerine bird, Prunella modularis; the hedge sparrow or hedge warbler. Full definition →

Middle English donek ← Old English *dunnuc
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The story

  1. Old English · inherited from*dunnuc
  2. Middle English · inherited fromdonek
  3. English todaydunnock

From Middle English donek, dunok, from Old English *dunnuc, equivalent to dun (“brownish grey”) + -ock (diminutive suffix). Compare Old High German doniklīn (“hedge-sparrow; dunnock”). Compare ruddock.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.