Coarse
/kɔːrs/noun
Rough in texture, grain, or manner; crude or vulgar.
Did you know?The word entered English through Old French, but its deeper trail leads back to Latin terms for “running” and “course,” showing how physical texture and social refinement can grow from the same root of movement.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*kers-
“to run”
Latin
Latin
currere
“to run”
Late Latin
Latin
cursus
“a running, course, or flow”
Old French
OF
coarse / cors
“common, ordinary; rough”
Middle English
English
coars
“rough, crude, not fine”
Modern English
English
coarse
“rough in texture or manner; vulgar or unrefined”