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quince

Etymology and origin of the English word quince

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /kwɪns/[1]

Etymology

It comes from Middle English quynce, originally the plural of quyn, coyn,[2][3][4][5][6] from Old French cooin,[2][3][4][6] from Latin cotoneum (“quince”),[2][3][4][5][6] probably a variant of cydōnium,[2][3][4][5] from Ancient Greek κυδώνιον (kudṓnion, “quince”),[2][3][4][5][6] traditionally “apple of Kydonia”, an ancient city in Crete.[2][4][6] Beekes, cited by Etymonline, takes the Greek word from an older Anatolian word and the link with Kydonia as folk etymology;[4] kodu- was the Lydian name for the fruit.[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The fruit, and the tree in quince tre (before 1325).[3][7][4]

Semantic evolution

The plural quynce came to be construed as a singular.[4][6] Italian cotogno and German Quitte come from the same Greek word.[4] In Australian slang to get on someone's quince means to irritate them (1941).[7]

Timeline

  • early 14th century – quoyn, coin.[4]
  • before 1325 – quince tre.[3]
  • about 1350 – coyns, quinces.[3]
  • 1941 – get on one's quince (Australian slang).[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The hard, fragrant, yellow, pear-shaped fruit of a small Asian tree of the rose family, used in preserves and jelly.
  2. The tree (Cydonia oblonga) that bears this fruit.

Word family

  • Bengal quince
  • Japanese quince
  • flowering quince
  • marmalade
  • Cydonia

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Quince.” Etymologically, 11 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/quince. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·