Etymologically
Log in

cod

Etymology and origin of the English word cod

History Permalink
Confidence
Unknown
First attested
1357

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /kɒd/ (UK); /kɑd/ (US)[1]

Etymology

Its origin is unknown.[2][3][4] Barnhart suggests a link with the older noun cod, a bag or seed pod (from Old English codd), through codnet, probably a bag-shaped fishing net (1299),[5] and Hoad likewise wonders whether it meant a bag fish, from its appearance;[3] Etymonline finds no conclusive connection with the Germanic word for bag.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The sea fish Gadus morhua: 1357 in the OED and Barnhart,[6][5] the mid-14th century in Etymonline.[2] It occurs earlier in a surname, Thomas cotfich, in the late 13th century (cotfish, 1273).[2][5]

Semantic evolution

Codfish is from the 1560s.[2] Cod-liver oil was known by the 1610s, recommended as a medicine from 1783, but became a popular remedy only after 1825.[2] Cod's head was 16th-century slang for a blockhead.[3]

Timeline

  • 1273 – cotfish, in a surname.[5]
  • 1357 – cod.[6][5]
  • 1560s – codfish.[2]
  • 1783 – cod-liver oil as a medicine.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A large food fish of the North Atlantic, Gadus morhua, related to the haddock.
  2. Any of various related or similar fishes.
  • codfish
  • codling
  • haddock

Usage notes

A different word cod, a bag, husk or pod, survives in peascod and codpiece;[3] it also meant the scrotum from 1398.[6][3] In Scotland and northern England dialect cod meant a pillow or cushion.[7][6]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  6. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)
Cite this entry

“Cod.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/cod. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·