Etymograph

English

Marmite

Marmite comes from French marmite ‘cooking pot’, and goes back to Old French marmite.

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400marmite
  2. Frenchc. 1600–presentsame form‘cooking pot’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 2000Marmite

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400marmite
  2. Frenchc. 1600–presentsame form‘cooking pot’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 2000Marmite

Earliest quotation: 2000, Mike Page, Re: Milk bar [WAS: Re: Great googly-moogly]: “A pink gin is prepared by swirling a few…”

The story

The common-noun sense derives from an advertising campaign (1996 and onwards) featuring the slogan love it or hate it.

Every English word from Old French marmite

Today it means

name A brand of sticky, dark brown, strongly flavored spread based on a yeast extract (a by-product of beer brewing), eaten on toast, in sandwiches, in savory dishes, etc.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Old French marmite / Marmite

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