Library›Where Words Come From›One card

A LITTLE SOMETHING WORTH KNOWING

A small discovery. Yours to pass on.

Language & WordsOne small ahaWord

The word “Alcohol” comes from, or was formed in, this language.

Think it. Then flip it. ahamoraTap to reveal Back to the cue
Language & WordsOne small aha
Your new ahaArabic

Alcohol comes from the Arabic al-kuhl, which originally named a fine cosmetic powder used as eyeliner. Source: Wiktionary: alcohol ↗

ahamoraReference ↗

Keep the thread going

One answer is a beginning.

Share a little curiosity, or follow it into the full collection.

Flip the full deck →

More from Where Words Come From

A few more worth knowing.

  1. 05This adjective for being unable to pay debts traces to Italian banca rotta, meaning broken bench.RECALL
    Bankrupt

    Bankrupt traces to Italian banca rotta, broken bench. Treat stories about physically smashing a trader's bench as explanations to…

    Open this card ↗
  2. 06The word “Bankrupt” comes from, or was formed in, this language.RECALL
    Italian

    Bankrupt traces to Italian banca rotta, broken bench. Treat stories about physically smashing a trader's bench as explanations to…

    Open this card ↗
  3. 07This word traces back to the Nahuatl language of the Aztec civilization.RECALL
    Chocolate

    Chocolate traces back to the Nahuatl language of the Aztec civilization.

    Open this card ↗