English word origin

Etymology of Fish

From fish, a metonymic occupational surname for a fish seller or a nickname for someone who resembled a fish. It could also be an Americanized spelling of German Fisch.

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

name

A surname.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From fish, a metonymic occupational surname for a fish seller or a nickname for someone who resembled a fish. It could also be an Americanized spelling of German Fisch.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Derivation mentionFischde

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "wp",
      "args": {
        "1": "+ (surname)"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "de",
        "3": "Fisch"
      },
      "expansion": "German Fisch"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "fish",
      "fish#English"
    ],
    [
      "Fisch",
      "Fisch#German"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A surname."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "51ad6bf84dcb7e813a82d38a54aad94504ac60d3b027f13f4e4635a451ee5f87",
      "rawRecordSha256": "64b4a21c8143404f4d9e6eb7031adecb02b73b8e9b1700d2046e0af727b4db41",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2569869
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

name

The constellation and zodiacal sign Pisces.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Semantic loan from Latin Pisces.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Semantic-loan mentionPiscesla

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "semantic loan",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "Pisces"
      },
      "expansion": "Semantic loan from Latin Pisces"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Pisces",
      "Pisces#Latin"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "The constellation and zodiacal sign Pisces."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "e7efb252e81bf5bdf55ff4b3cf6e6141f8cb664368deb0472ad3689a62153f52",
      "rawRecordSha256": "555bd784ce9efe655122a3d4402293a626a48395b1a1a5360d22abc9fa76f641",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2569870
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for Fish →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-RmlzaA