club

Where does the word "club" come from? It comes from Old Norse klubba, and was adopted directly into English (1200s).

Club’s story begins in Old Norse: klubba meant “a heavy stick, cudgel.” A heavy stick or cudgel used as a weapon. It reached English by 1200s as club. Broadened from the weapon to a group of people bound together, like a bundled stick. Today, club means a heavy stick used as a weapon, or an association of people with a shared interest.

1. Stage 1 · Old Norse · medieval klubba "a heavy stick, cudgel", a heavy stick or cudgel used as a weapon.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1200s club "a heavy stick, or a group of people with shared interests", broadened from the weapon to a group of people bound together, like a bundled stick.