Etymology

son of a bitch

Today it means: An objectionable or despicable person (usually, a man). Full definition →

Middle English biche-sone ← Old Norse bikkju-sonr
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The story

  1. Old Norse · derived frombikkju-sonr“son of a bitch”
  2. Middle English · inherited frombiche-sone“son of a bitch”
  3. English todayson of a bitch

Alteration of an earlier phrase represented by Middle English biche-sone (“son of a bitch”, literally “bitch's son”), calqued from Old Norse bikkju-sonr (“son of a bitch”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.