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Where does the word "cockroach" come from? It comes from Spanish cucaracha, passing through English before entering English (1600s).
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Where does the word "cockroach" come from? It comes from Spanish cucaracha, passing through English before entering English (1600s).
Cockroach’s story begins in Spanish: cucaracha meant “cockroach.” Perhaps from 'cuca', a kind of caterpillar. By 1620s, the word had taken hold in English as cacarootch. Captain John Smith wrote in 1624 of 'a certaine India Bug, called by the Spaniards a Cacarootch'. It reached English by 1600s as cockroach. Folk etymology reshaped the strange word into two familiar ones, 'cock' and 'roach'. Today, cockroach means a beetle-like insect that is a household pest.
- Stage 1 · Spanish · 1500s cucaracha "cockroach", perhaps from 'cuca', a kind of caterpillar.
- Stage 2 · English · 1620s cacarootch "cockroach", Captain John Smith wrote in 1624 of 'a certaine India Bug, called by the Spaniards a Cacarootch'.
- Stage 3 · English · 1600s cockroach "household pest", folk etymology reshaped the strange word into two familiar ones, 'cock' and 'roach'.