Etymology

phoca

P3H4O1C3A1

Today it means: A seal. Full definition →

First used 16th–19th c.Latin phōca ← Ancient Greek φώκη
Ask AI about its historyChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

The story

  1. Ancient Greek · derived fromφώκη
  2. Latin · borrowed fromphōca
  3. English todayphoca

Borrowed from Latin phōca, from Ancient Greek φώκη (phṓkē).

Words from the same roots

Latinphōca all →

phocine

Ancient Greekφώκη all →

phocinephocomelia

First known use, by meaning

  • 16th–19th c. A seal.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.