Hockey-Stick
/ˈhɒk.i stɪk/noun
A curved implement used to strike a puck or ball in hockey.
Did you know?The word hockey may come from Middle French hoquet, meaning “shepherd’s crook,” while stick is related to English words such as “stigma” through an ancient root meaning “to prick.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*steig-
“To prick, pierce, or stick; a proposed ancestor of the English word “stick”.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
stígma
“A mark made by piercing or tattooing; source of the English word “stigma”.”
Old English
Old English
sticca
“A stick, rod, or slender piece of wood.”
15th Century
Middle French
hoquet
“A shepherd’s crook or a hooked staff; a commonly proposed source for “hockey,” though the etymology is debated.”
18th Century
English
hockey
“The name of the stick-and-ball game, later applied to related forms of the sport.”
Modern English
English
hockey stick
“The curved stick used to play hockey; the hyphenated form “hockey-stick” is also used attributively.”