Catkin
/ˈkæt.kɪn/noun
A slim, hanging cluster of small, usually inconspicuous flowers produced by trees such as willows, birches, and oaks.
Did you know?Catkins are not petals or leaves but dense reproductive structures, and many release pollen in clouds carried by the wind rather than by insects.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ǵenh₁-
“To beget, give birth, or come into being; the ancestral root behind the “kin” element.”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*kunją
“Family, race, or kindred group.”
Old English
Old English
cynn
“Kin, family, race, or kind; later contributing to modern “kin” and “kind.””
16th Century
Dutch
katteken
“Little cat; a diminutive formed from kat, “cat,” with a smallness suffix.”
17th Century
English
catkin
“A “little cat,” adopted as the name for a soft, cylindrical flower cluster resembling a small cat’s tail.”
Modern English
English
catkin
“A usually slender, drooping inflorescence of trees such as willow, hazel, birch, or oak.”