English
hook
Hook comes from Middle English hoke, from Old English hōc, from Proto-Germanic *hōkaz, a variant of *hakô ‘hook’.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hōkazreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hōkreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150hōc‘hook’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500hoke
- Englishearliest quotation 1611hook
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*hōkazreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hōkreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150hōc‘hook’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500hoke
- Englishearliest quotation 1611hook
Earliest quotation: 1611, The Tragedie of Cymbeline: “A shop of all the qualities, that man Loues…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kog-
through Proto-Germanic *hakô
through Middle English hoke
Today it means
noun A rod bent into a curved shape, typically with one end free and the other end secured to a rope or other attachment.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *hōkaz / hook