Tacks
/tæks/noun
Small pointed fasteners used to attach things to a surface.
Did you know?English tacks comes from the same Germanic root as words for a pointed spike or nail, and that root also lives on in “tag” and “tack” in older senses of fastening and attaching.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*steig-
“to prick, pierce, or stick”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*stakaz
“a pointed stick, stake, or spike”
Old English
OE
tæc
“a small nail or pin”
Middle English
ME
tac
“a small nail, pin, or fastening”
Modern English
English
tack
“a small pointed fastener; plural tacks”