*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of gowk

From Middle English goke, gowke, from Old Norse gaukr (“cuckoo”), from Proto-Germanic *gaukaz (“cuckoo”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰegʰuǵʰ- (“cuckoo”).

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 3 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

A cuckoo. · A fool.

verb

To make foolish; to stupefy.

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

From Middle English goke, gowke, from Old Norse gaukr (“cuckoo”), from Proto-Germanic *gaukaz (“cuckoo”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰegʰuǵʰ- (“cuckoo”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentiongokeenm
  • Derivation mentiongaukrnon · cuckoo
  • Derivation mention*gaukazgem-pro · cuckoo
  • Derivation mention*gʰegʰuǵʰ-ine-pro · cuckoo
Inspect preserved source fields

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

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    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "goke"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English goke"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "gaukr",
        "t": "cuckoo"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse gaukr (“cuckoo”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*gaukaz",
        "t": "cuckoo"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *gaukaz (“cuckoo”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*gʰegʰuǵʰ-",
        "t": "cuckoo"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *gʰegʰuǵʰ- (“cuckoo”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "goke",
      "goke#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "gowke",
      "gowke#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "gaukr",
      "gaukr#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "*gaukaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/gaukaz"
    ],
    [
      "*gʰegʰuǵʰ-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/gʰegʰuǵʰ-"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A cuckoo.",
        "A fool."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Northern-England",
        "Scotland"
      ],
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    },
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      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To make foolish; to stupefy."
      ],
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

An apple core. · The central part of any thing; pith; core. · The hard centre of a boil or sore. · The yolk of an egg.

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

Origin uncertain. Likely from Middle English coke, colk (“the core or heart of an apple or onion, pith”), from Old English *colc (“the gullet, esophagus; pit of the stomach; trench, pit, gully”), from Proto-West Germanic *kolk, from Proto-Germanic *kulkaz, *kulukaz (“gullet”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʷel- (“to devour, swallow, gulp; throat, gullet”). Possibly a doublet of coke.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentioncolkenm · the core or heart of an apple or onion, pith
  • Inherited-form mention*colcang · the gullet, esophagus; pit of the stomach; trench, pit, gully
  • Inherited-form mention*kolkgmw-pro
  • Inherited-form mention*kulukazgem-pro · gullet
  • Derivation mention*gʷel-ine-pro · to devour, swallow, gulp; throat, gullet
  • Doublet mentioncokeen

This page abbreviates 1 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.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "unc",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "uncertain"
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    },
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    },
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        "2": "gem-pro",
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      },
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    },
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      "name": "der",
      "args": {
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        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*gʷel-",
        "t": "to devour, swallow, gulp; throat, gullet"
      },
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    },
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      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "coke",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "doublet of coke"
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  ],
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    [
      "coke, colk",
      "colk#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "*colc",
      "Reconstruction:Old English/colc"
    ],
    [
      "*kolk",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/kolk"
    ],
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      "*kulkaz, *kulukaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/kulukaz"
    ],
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      "*gʷel-",
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        "An apple core.",
        "The central part of any thing; pith; core.",
        "The hard centre of a boil or sore.",
        "The yolk of an egg."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Geordie",
        "obsolete",
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
verb

To retch; vomit.

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

Compare Norwegian Nynorsk gulka (“to burp, belch”). Compare also Scots cowk (“to strain, retch”), Dutch kolken (“to belch”), German kolken (“to gulp”), dialectal German kölken, kolksen (“to vomit”), Danish kulke (“to gulp”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Cognate mentiongulkann · to burp, belch
  • Cognate mentioncowksco · to strain, retch
  • Cognate mentionkolkennl · to belch
  • Cognate mentionkolkende · to gulp
  • Cognate mentionkölkende
  • Cognate mentionkulkeda · to gulp
Inspect preserved source fields

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

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    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nn",
        "2": "gulka",
        "t": "to burp, belch"
      },
      "expansion": "Norwegian Nynorsk gulka (“to burp, belch”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sco",
        "2": "cowk",
        "t": "to strain, retch"
      },
      "expansion": "Scots cowk (“to strain, retch”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "kolken",
        "t": "to belch"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch kolken (“to belch”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "kolken",
        "t": "to gulp"
      },
      "expansion": "German kolken (“to gulp”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "kölken"
      },
      "expansion": "German kölken"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da",
        "2": "kulke",
        "t": "to gulp"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish kulke (“to gulp”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
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      "gulka#Norwegian_Nynorsk"
    ],
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      "cowk",
      "cowk#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "kolken",
      "kolken#Dutch"
    ],
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      "kolken",
      "kolken#German"
    ],
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      "kölken",
      "kölken#German"
    ],
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      "kolksen",
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    ],
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      "kulke",
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    ]
  ],
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  "descendants": [],
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        "To retch; vomit."
      ],
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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 gowk →

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-Z293aw