English word origin

Etymology of King

Source etymology material for King; no narrative etymology was supplied in this snapshot.

2 source sectionsBrief source recordWiktionary 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.

Unnumbered source etymology · variant 1/2

Original entry ↗

noun

radiotelephony clear-code word for the letter K. · The title of a king. · A King pigeon.

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

No narrative was extracted for this section. Available source templates and references appear below; no ancestor chain has been invented to fill the gap.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Cebuano",
      "lang_code": "ceb",
      "word": "King",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "radiotelephony clear-code word for the letter K.",
        "The title of a king.",
        "A King pigeon."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "c0c48a72021ac76f737a858d07dbd9542966793601621c44c27de87c23609d27",
      "rawRecordSha256": "9077926f6a3882284d2df2d012583f6e2213d35e3692d4704e992a18c10d4eee",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 328163
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Unnumbered source etymology · variant 2/2

Original entry ↗

name

An English and Scottish surname transferred from the nickname, originally a nickname for someone who either acted as if he were a king or had worked in the king's household. · King class, a class of steam locomotives once used on the GWR which were all named after kings. · An unincorporated community in Gibson County, Indiana. · A city in Stokes County and Forsyth County, North Carolina.

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

No narrative was extracted for this section. Available source templates and references appear below; no ancestor chain has been invented to fill the gap.

This page abbreviates 7 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "lang_code": "ja",
      "word": "キング",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "Kingu"
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "An English and Scottish surname transferred from the nickname, originally a nickname for someone who either acted as if he were a king or had worked in the king's household.",
        "King class, a class of steam locomotives once used on the GWR which were all named after kings.",
        "An unincorporated community in Gibson County, Indiana.",
        "A city in Stokes County and Forsyth County, North Carolina."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable",
        "UK"
      ],
      "recordId": "2eb7466c7a10987f8c3c2b24eea3a8a812db3a46d478c7763adf77479ecb2658",
      "rawRecordSha256": "af3bb061440869b129c181a394eac0b41ca41179bce8de0660173a193159c762",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 328164
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 7,
    "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 King →

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-S2luZw