croquette

Where does the word "croquette" come from? It comes from French croquer, passing through French before entering English (1706).

Croquette’s story begins in French: croquer meant “to crunch.” An imitative (echoic) verb mimicking the sound of crunching. Within French, it grew into croquette by 1600s. A diminutive of croquer coined for a small fried, crunchy food ball. It reached English by 1706 as croquette. Borrowed for the fried mixture of minced meat or fish formed into small balls. Today, croquette means a small fried food ball or roll, typically containing minced meat, fish, or vegetables.

1. Stage 1 · French · 1600s croquer "to crunch", an imitative (echoic) verb mimicking the sound of crunching.
2. Stage 2 · French · 1600s croquette "a small fried food ball", a diminutive of croquer coined for a small fried, crunchy food ball.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1706 croquette "a small fried food ball or roll", borrowed for the fried mixture of minced meat or fish formed into small balls.