carat

Where does the word "carat" come from? It comes from Greek keration, and was adopted directly into English (1570s).

Carat’s story begins in Greek: keration meant “a carob seed.” Literally a little horn, the carob seed once used as a standard weight for gemstones. It reached English by 1570s as carat. Settled as the English word for a unit of weight for gemstones. Today, carat means a unit of weight for precious stones, or a measure of gold purity.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient keration "a carob seed", literally a little horn, the carob seed once used as a standard weight for gemstones.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1570s carat "a unit of weight for precious stones", settled as the English word for a unit of weight for gemstones.