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Where does the word "snag" come from? It comes from Old Norse snagi, and was adopted directly into English (1570s).
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Where does the word "snag" come from? It comes from Old Norse snagi, and was adopted directly into English (1570s).
Snag’s story begins in Old Norse: snagi meant “peg, point.” A peg or projecting point. It reached English by 1570s as snag. A jagged stump; river 'snags' wrecked many American steamboats, and by the 1830s a snag was any hidden obstacle. Today, snag means an unexpected obstacle; a sharp projection.
- Stage 1 · Old Norse · medieval snagi "peg, point", a peg or projecting point.
- Stage 2 · English · 1570s snag "obstacle", a jagged stump; river 'snags' wrecked many American steamboats, and by the 1830s a snag was any hidden obstacle.