Etymologically
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leather

Etymology and origin of the English word leather

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Inherited
First attested
c. 700
Inherited from
Middle English lether

Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈleð.ə/, US /ˈleð.ɚ/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English lether, from Old English leþer, found only in compounds such as leþerwyrhta “leather worker”,[2][3][4] from Proto-Germanic *leþrą,[2][4][3] which also gave Dutch leder, leer, German Leder and Old Norse leðr,[3][2] from PIE *letro-.[2][3][4] The only cognates outside Germanic are Celtic: Old Irish lethar, Welsh lledr and Breton ler.[2][3][5] Barnhart notes that this may be a western Indo-European word, or that one branch may have borrowed it from the other.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Tanned or dressed hide, in Old English compounds about 700.[2][3] The OED's first quotation for the simple word is from before 1225.[6]

Semantic evolution

An article made of leather, such as a strap, is from about 1400,[6] and leather clothes such as boots and leggings, leathers, from 1837.[6] In cricket and football the ball is the leather from 1868.[6] The adjective is from before 1333.[2][3] The verb meant to cover with leather before 1225,[6] and to beat with a strap from before 1625;[6] leather away, to work hard, is from 1869.[6] In the 1970s the word gained a sexual sense in gay slang, referring to leather clothing.[3][7] Etymonline notes that in trade, skins dressed with the fur on are not called leather.[3]

Timeline

  • c. 700 – leþer- in compounds.[2]
  • a1225 – leather; to cover with leather.[6]
  • c. 1400 – a leather strap.[6]
  • a1625 – to thrash.[6]
  • 1837 – leathers, leather clothes.[6]
  • 1868 – the ball (cricket, football).[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The skin of an animal made smooth and flexible by tanning, with the hair removed.
  2. (leathers) Leather clothes, especially as worn by motorcyclists.
  3. Something made of leather, such as a strap.

Verb

  1. (informal) To beat with a strap; to thrash.
  2. To cover with leather.

Word family

  • leatherlike
  • leather-hard
  • leatherneck
  • Leatheroid
  • leatherwear
  • leatherwood
  • shoe-leather
  • whitleather
  • leathern
  • leathery
  • leatherette

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
Cite this entry

“Leather.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/leather. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

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