English
goat
Goat comes from Middle English goot, and goes back to Proto-Germanic *gaits.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gaitsreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*gaitreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150gāt
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500goot
- Englishearliest quotation 1918goat
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gaitsreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*gaitreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150gāt
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500goot
- Englishearliest quotation 1918goat
Earliest quotation: 1918, Agricultural Experiment Station, Director's Biennial Report: “Rape and clover has yielded 283 sheep days of…”
The story
The sense of lecherous man derives from the slang expression "horny as a goat".
Every English word from Proto-Germanic *gaits
Today it means
noun Any ruminant of the genus Capra.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *gaits / goat