*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of goit

From Middle English gote (“channel, stream”), from Old English *gotu (“channel, gutter, drain”), from Proto-Germanic *gutō (“gutter, drain”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰew- (“to pour”). Cognate with Scots gote, goit, go

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

A small artificial channel carrying water. Usually used with respect to channels built to feed mills.

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

From Middle English gote (“channel, stream”), from Old English *gotu (“channel, gutter, drain”), from Proto-Germanic *gutō (“gutter, drain”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰew- (“to pour”). Cognate with Scots gote, goit, goate (“trench, ditch, watercourse”), Dutch goot (“gutter”), Middle Low German gote (“ditch”). More at gote.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentiongoteenm
  • Inherited-form mention*gotuang
  • Inherited-form mention*gutōgem-pro
  • Derivation mention*ǵʰew-ine-pro
  • Cognate mentiongotesco
  • Cognate mentiongootnl
  • Cognate mentiongotegml
Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "gote",
        "4": "",
        "5": "channel, stream"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English gote (“channel, stream”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "*gotu",
        "4": "",
        "5": "channel, gutter, drain"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English *gotu (“channel, gutter, drain”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*gutō",
        "4": "",
        "5": "gutter, drain"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *gutō (“gutter, drain”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*ǵʰew-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to pour"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰew- (“to pour”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sco",
        "2": "gote"
      },
      "expansion": "Scots gote"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "goot",
        "3": "",
        "4": "gutter"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch goot (“gutter”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "gml",
        "2": "gote",
        "3": "",
        "4": "ditch"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Low German gote (“ditch”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "gote",
      "gote#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "*gotu",
      "Reconstruction:Old English/gotu"
    ],
    [
      "*gutō",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/gutō"
    ],
    [
      "*ǵʰew-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ǵʰew-"
    ],
    [
      "gote",
      "gote#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "goit",
      "goit#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "goate",
      "goate#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "goot",
      "goot#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "gote",
      "gote#Middle_Low_German"
    ],
    [
      "gote",
      "gote#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A small artificial channel carrying water. Usually used with respect to channels built to feed mills."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "UK"
      ],
      "recordId": "172856719d0324c7885e634e326a987a4a870da9bfda55cfaf29492291560872",
      "rawRecordSha256": "377b1e30c0724a4d7b1c61c5bd3e13e110afb23f0d7b9d557c02fb88fd0ac266",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 403072
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A fool.

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

Popularised by the television series Red Dwarf. Possibly a shortening of goitre (i.e. a pain in the neck), or from git.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "goitre",
      "goitre#English"
    ],
    [
      "pain in the neck",
      "pain in the neck"
    ],
    [
      "git",
      "git#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A fool."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "derogatory",
        "informal"
      ],
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  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
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    "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 goit →

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-Z29pdA