Etymology

fossick

fos·sick
F4O1S1S1I1C3K5

Today it means: To search for something; to rummage. Full definition →

First used mid 19th c.
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The story

Probably from dialectal fossick (“to ferret out”), fossuck (“troublesome person”), fussick (“to potter over one's work”), fussock (“to bustle about”), further origin uncertain. Compare fuss.

First known use, by meaning

  • from mid 19th c. To elicit information; to ferret out.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.