wafer

Where does the word "wafer" come from? It comes from Frankish wafla, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).

Wafer’s story begins in Frankish: wafla meant “honeycomb.” A Frankish word related to 'weave' and to Dutch 'wafel', waffle. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as waufre. A thin cake with a honeycomb pattern. It reached English by 1300s as wafer. Silicon 'wafers' date from the 1950s. Today, wafer means a thin crisp biscuit; a thin slice.

1. Stage 1 · Frankish · ancient wafla "honeycomb", a Frankish word related to 'weave' and to Dutch 'wafel', waffle.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval waufre "wafer", a thin cake with a honeycomb pattern.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1300s wafer "thin cake", silicon 'wafers' date from the 1950s.