*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of bidon

Borrowed from French bidon (“can, canister, tin”), from Middle French bidon (“small sealed portable container made of metal or wood”), from Old Norse *biða (“container, vessel”), from Proto-Germanic *bidōn, *bidjan (“tub

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In this entry · 1 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

Original entry ↗
noun

A bottle or flask for holding a beverage such as water or wine; (specifically, sports) a water bottle which can be squeezed to squirt the beverage out of the nozzle, especially (cycling) one designed for mounting on a bicycle. · A cup made of wood. · An oil drum; a petrol can.

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

Borrowed from French bidon (“can, canister, tin”), from Middle French bidon (“small sealed portable container made of metal or wood”), from Old Norse *biða (“container, vessel”), from Proto-Germanic *bidōn, *bidjan (“tub, vat; vessel”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰidʰ- (“barrel; bucket; pot”), from *bʰeydʰ- (“to bind; to weave”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Root classification mention*bʰeydʰ-ine-pro
  • Borrowed-form mentionbidonfr · can, canister, tin
  • Derivation mentionbidonfrm · small sealed portable container made of metal or wood
  • Derivation mention*biðanon · container, vessel
  • Derivation mention*bidōngem-pro
  • Derivation mention*bʰidʰ-ine-pro · barrel; bucket; pot
Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "root",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*bʰeydʰ-"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fr",
        "3": "bidon",
        "t": "can, canister, tin"
      },
      "expansion": "French bidon (“can, canister, tin”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "frm",
        "3": "bidon",
        "t": "small sealed portable container made of metal or wood"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle French bidon (“small sealed portable container made of metal or wood”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "*biða",
        "t": "container, vessel"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse *biða (“container, vessel”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*bidōn"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *bidōn"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*bʰidʰ-",
        "t": "barrel; bucket; pot"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *bʰidʰ- (“barrel; bucket; pot”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "mounted",
      "mount#Verb"
    ],
    [
      "bicycle",
      "bicycle#Noun"
    ],
    [
      "bidon",
      "bidon#French"
    ],
    [
      "bidon",
      "bidon#Middle_French"
    ],
    [
      "*biða",
      "Reconstruction:Old Norse/biða"
    ],
    [
      "*bidōn",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/bidōn"
    ],
    [
      "*bidjan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/bidjan"
    ],
    [
      "*bʰidʰ-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰidʰ-"
    ],
    [
      "*bʰeydʰ-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰeydʰ-"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A bottle or flask for holding a beverage such as water or wine; (specifically, sports) a water bottle which can be squeezed to squirt the beverage out of the nozzle, especially (cycling) one designed for mounting on a bicycle.",
        "A cup made of wood.",
        "An oil drum; a petrol can."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "archaic"
      ],
      "recordId": "5dd3fd42e30c2352ace9328c2c237b82adac49aedee491e281d9ff14e843debe",
      "rawRecordSha256": "b887d0db467e0ce334cc7532d16108acb8e1f27fa014165e114596758185f5cf",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 383077
    }
  ],
  "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 bidon →

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-Ymlkb24