Pumpkin
/ˈpʌmp.kɪn/noun
A large round fruit with thick orange flesh and a hard rind, from certain varieties of squash.
Did you know?The English word ultimately comes from a Native American term recorded in the early colonial period, and the -kin ending was later added in English, giving the word its oddly cute, almost magical shape.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Algonquian
PA
*póhkəmən
“a round fruit or squash-like plant”
Massachusett / related Algonquian languages
Algonquian
póhpqon / pockquon
“a pumpkin or squash”
17th Century
English
pompion / pumpkin
“a pumpkin or melon-like gourd”
17th–18th Century
English
pumpkin
“the modern form, influenced by the English diminutive suffix -kin”
Modern English
English
pumpkin
“a large edible gourd, especially the orange-fruited type used in cooking and decoration”
Explore more surprising origins