English
kick-ass
From kick + -ass.
A compound of kick + -ass
Proto-Germanic *kaikaz ‘bent backwards’
Old Norse kikna ‘to sink at the knees’
Middle English kyken ‘to strike out with the foot’
English kick
Today it means
adj Rough, aggressive; powerful and successful.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / kick-ass