lettuce

Where does the word "lettuce" come from? It comes from Latin lactuca, passing through Old French before entering English (1200s).

Lettuce’s story begins in Latin: lactuca meant “lettuce.” From 'lac', milk, for the milky sap that seeps from cut stems. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as laitues. Plural of 'laitue'; English borrowed the plural and treated it as singular. It reached English by 1200s as lettuce. Later picked up American slang sense of paper money, from its green leaves. Today, lettuce means a leafy green plant eaten raw in salads.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient lactuca "lettuce", from 'lac', milk, for the milky sap that seeps from cut stems.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval laitues "lettuces", plural of 'laitue'; English borrowed the plural and treated it as singular.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1200s lettuce "a salad plant", later picked up American slang sense of paper money, from its green leaves.