English word origin

Etymology of fitch

Shortening of fitchew, or directly borrowed from its antecedent, Middle Dutch vitsche (“polecat”). More at fitchew.

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 polecat, such as the European polecat (Mustela putorius), the striped polecat, steppe polecat, or black-footed polecat of America. · A skin of a polecat.

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

Shortening of fitchew, or directly borrowed from its antecedent, Middle Dutch vitsche (“polecat”). More at fitchew.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Borrowed-form mentionvitschedum · polecat

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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        "1": "en",
        "2": "dum",
        "3": "vitsche",
        "t": "polecat"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Dutch vitsche (“polecat”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "fitchew",
      "fitchew#English"
    ],
    [
      "vitsche",
      "vitsche#Middle_Dutch"
    ],
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      "fitchew#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A polecat, such as the European polecat (Mustela putorius), the striped polecat, steppe polecat, or black-footed polecat of America.",
        "A skin of a polecat."
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

verb

To use this kind of open weave.

noun

A kind of twisted open weave in wickerwork.

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

From fitch due to the similarity to the striped or mottled pattern of polecat fur.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To use this kind of open weave."
      ],
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗

noun

Alternative form of vetch.

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

See vetch.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Doublet mentionvetchen

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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    ]
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    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Alternative form of vetch."
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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 fitch →

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-Zml0Y2g