Etymology

osculum

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Today it means: One of the suckers on the head of a tapeworm. Full definition →

First used 18th c.Latin ōsculum ← Proto-Italic *ōs ← Proto-Indo-European *h₁óh₃s
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁óh₃s
  2. Proto-Italic*ōs
  3. Latinōs
  4. Latinōsculum
  5. English todayosculum

Borrowed from Latin ōsculum (“little mouth”).

First known use, by meaning

  • from 18th c. One of the suckers on the head of a tapeworm.
  • from 18th c. The main opening in a sponge from which water is expelled.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.