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bathtub

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Etymology and origin of the English word bathtub

Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
c. 1614 G. Chapman's translation of Homer's Odyssey
Ultimate origins
Old English bæþMiddle Low German tubbe
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English bath
English bathtub
From the same root
English bathroom ← bath

Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˈbɑːθtʌb/[1]
  • US: /ˈbæθtʌb/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English bath + tub.[2][3][4] The OED compares the earlier bathing-tub.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A large, long tub to be filled with water so that a person can get in and wash: the OED's first record is in G. Chapman's translation of Homer's Odyssey, about 1614.[2]

Semantic evolution

The OED's definition adds that the tub is now usually connected to the plumbing.[2] The other dictionaries date the word only from the 19th century: Merriam-Webster gives 1821 as its first known use,[5] Dictionary.com 1825–35,[4] the Collegiate 1836[6] and Etymonline 1837, when it was used especially of a tub fixed in a bathroom.[3] In the Prohibition era bathtub gin is recorded by 1928,[3] and Green's Dictionary of Slang has bathtub hooch or bathtub gin for illicitly distilled alcohol, named after the place where it was made, from 1930.[7] American slang used bathtub for an open touring car with two cross seats (1954) and for a motorcycle sidecar (1960).[8] The bathtub ring is the dirty mark left at the water level inside a bath after it has been drained.[9]

Timeline

  • c. 1614 – a large tub for bathing, in Chapman's Odyssey.[2]
  • 1821 – first known use according to Merriam-Webster.[5]
  • 1837 – a tub to bathe in, especially one fixed in a bathroom.[3]
  • 1928 – bathtub gin.[3]
  • 1930 – bathtub hooch, illicit alcohol.[7]
  • 1954 – American slang, an open touring car.[8]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A large tub for taking a bath, usually fixed in a bathroom and connected to the water supply: He filled the bathtub with hot water.[10][5][2]
  2. A sitzmark.[5]

Word family

  • bathtub gin

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ a b Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
  8. ^ a b Dalzell, Tom; Victor, Terry, eds. (2013), The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, 2nd ed., London: Routledge
  9. ^ Tréguer, Pascal, Word Histories, wordhistories.net, p. "‘bathtub ring’: meaning and origin", 4 April 2024
  10. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
Cite this entry

“Bathtub.” Etymologically, 31 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/bathtub. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·