*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of carr

From Middle English kerr and Middle English carr meaning meadow, field or grassland of a low lying variety; possibly related to Old Norse kjarr. Compare Swedish kärr, Icelandic kjarr.

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 ↗
noun

Any marsh; marshy ground, swampland. · In particular, a marsh or fen formed when the litter of decaying reeds (e.g. in a lake) raises the ground level above the water, allowing more vegetation like sedges and then low bushes or trees to grow; a marshy woodland. (Compare marsh, swamp, bog, fen.)

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

From Middle English kerr and Middle English carr meaning meadow, field or grassland of a low lying variety; possibly related to Old Norse kjarr. Compare Swedish kärr, Icelandic kjarr.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Derivation mentionkerrenm
  • Derivation mentioncarrenm
  • Derivation mentionkjarrnon
  • Cognate mentionkärrsv
  • Cognate mentionkjarris
Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "kerr"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English kerr"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "carr"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English carr"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "kjarr"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse kjarr"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sv",
        "2": "kärr"
      },
      "expansion": "Swedish kärr"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "is",
        "2": "kjarr"
      },
      "expansion": "Icelandic kjarr"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "kerr",
      "kerr#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "carr",
      "carr#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "meadow",
      "meadow"
    ],
    [
      "field",
      "field"
    ],
    [
      "grassland",
      "grassland"
    ],
    [
      "kjarr",
      "kjarr#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "kärr",
      "kärr#Swedish"
    ],
    [
      "kjarr",
      "kjarr#Icelandic"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Any marsh; marshy ground, swampland.",
        "In particular, a marsh or fen formed when the litter of decaying reeds (e.g. in a lake) raises the ground level above the water, allowing more vegetation like sedges and then low bushes or trees to grow; a marshy woodland. (Compare marsh, swamp, bog, fen.)"
      ],
      "tags": [],
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    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
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    "links": 0,
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  }
}

Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
noun

Rock.

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

From Northumbrian Old English carr; possibly adopted from a Cumbric *carreg, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kh₂er- (“hard”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "carr"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English carr"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "xcb",
        "3": "*carreg"
      },
      "expansion": "Cumbric *carreg"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*kh₂er-",
        "t": "hard"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *kh₂er- (“hard”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "carr",
      "carr#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*carreg",
      "Reconstruction:Cumbric/carreg"
    ],
    [
      "*kh₂er-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/kh₂er-"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Rock."
      ],
      "tags": [],
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  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
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    "lexicalSenses": 0,
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  }
}

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 carr →

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-Y2Fycg