cabbage

Where does the word "cabbage" come from? It comes from Latin caput, passing through Old North French before entering English (1400s).

Cabbage’s story begins in Latin: caput meant “head.” The same root as 'captain' and 'capital'. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old North French as caboche. A playful dialect word for a head, applied to the round, head-like vegetable. It reached English by 1400s as cabbage. Took over from the older word 'cole', which survives in 'coleslaw' and 'kale'. Today, cabbage means a vegetable with thick green or purple leaves forming a round head.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient caput "head", the same root as 'captain' and 'capital'.
2. Stage 2 · Old North French · medieval caboche "head", a playful dialect word for a head, applied to the round, head-like vegetable.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1400s cabbage "a leafy vegetable with a dense head", took over from the older word 'cole', which survives in 'coleslaw' and 'kale'.