Scotch
/skɒtʃ/noun
A term for something related to Scotland, or a type of adhesive tape; also a verb meaning to stop or crush.
Did you know?The word ultimately goes back to Latin and Old French forms used for the Scots, but English later spun off a separate verb sense meaning to disable or crush, giving the word a surprisingly violent second life.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*skot-
“darkness, shadow”
Latin
Latin
Scoti
“the Scots / Irish raiders”
Old French
OF
escot
“a Scot; Scottish”
Middle English
English
Scotch
“Scottish; a Scot”
16th Century
English
scotch
“to cut, notch, or disable”
Modern English
English
Scotch
“Scottish; a type of adhesive tape; to stop or crush”
Explore more surprising origins