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hodgepodge

Etymology and origin of the English word hodgepodge

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Formation
Borrowing
Borrowed from
Old French hochepot

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈhɒd͡ʒˌpɒd͡ʒ/ (UK); /ˈhɑd͡ʒˌpɑd͡ʒ/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is an alteration of hotchpotch,[2][3][4][5] from Middle English hochepot,[2][6][3] borrowed from Old French hochepot (“stew, soup”),[2][6][3] from hocher “to shake”,[6][3] of Germanic origin (compare Middle High German hotzen “to shake”),[6][3] and pot.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

In Anglo-French law, the gathering of property into a common pot before dividing it equally (about 1290).[6][3]

Semantic evolution

In Middle English hotchpotch was a kind of stew, such as one of goose, herbs, spices and wine (1381),[6][3] and from this a disorderly mixture or jumble (about 1390).[6] The form hodgepodge appears in the 15th century.[3][4] Random House dates hodgepodge to 1615–25.[5]

Timeline

  • c1290 – legal term, property collected in a common pot.[6][3]
  • 1381 – a stew.[6]
  • c1390 – a jumble.[6]
  • 15th century – hogpoch, hodgepodge.[3][4]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A mixture of unlike things; a jumble.

Verb

  1. To arrange in a disorderly way.

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Hodgepodge.” Etymologically, 15 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/hodgepodge. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·