*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of kibe

Origin unknown, but first attested in Middle English. suggested origins and context Attestations in Shakespeare's time seem to suggest it was intended as mildly vulgar (compare zit) and metaphorical; see more at this Ope

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
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 chilblain (often ulcerated), especially on the heel of the foot (also afflictive to some animals); a cold sore or blister.

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

Origin unknown, but first attested in Middle English. suggested origins and context Attestations in Shakespeare's time seem to suggest it was intended as mildly vulgar (compare zit) and metaphorical; see more at this Open Literature article, which claims Welsh as most probable origin: * Compare Welsh cibi, cibwst (“chilblain(s)”), although this itself may borrow from Middle English, and we may be dealing with some ancient unknown term. Compare English gyve (“schackles”), a medieval word that might also take from Celtic. There has been further theoretical conjecture as well: * Assuming the origin English or Welsh derived from is pre-Celtic, some have speculated a link to an Old European word from a British Vasconic substrate, in this case related to Basque gibiztin (“knot, bow”), compounded from a lost root *gibi, *kibi (“lump?”).

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": "unknown",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "title": "Origin unknown"
      },
      "expansion": "Origin unknown"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English"
    },
    {
      "name": "col-top",
      "args": {
        "1": "2",
        "2": "suggested origins and context"
      },
      "expansion": "suggested origins and context"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "cy",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Welsh"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "cy",
        "2": "cibi"
      },
      "expansion": "Welsh cibi"
    },
    {
      "name": "noncog",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gyve",
        "t": "schackles"
      },
      "expansion": "English gyve (“schackles”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "qfa-sub"
      },
      "expansion": "substrate"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "eu",
        "2": "gibiztin",
        "3": "",
        "4": "knot, bow"
      },
      "expansion": "Basque gibiztin (“knot, bow”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "zit",
      "zit#English"
    ],
    [
      "cibi",
      "cibi#Welsh"
    ],
    [
      "cibwst",
      "cibwst#Welsh"
    ],
    [
      "gyve",
      "gyve#English"
    ],
    [
      "gibiztin",
      "gibiztin#Basque"
    ],
    [
      "*gibi",
      "Reconstruction:Basque/gibi"
    ],
    [
      "*kibi",
      "Reconstruction:Basque/kibi"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A chilblain (often ulcerated), especially on the heel of the foot (also afflictive to some animals); a cold sore or blister."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "archaic",
        "poetic",
        "rare"
      ],
      "recordId": "77da2882bf6da880388841b314ad66f3c38080d935dd36b65a3a530b3bffcb0a",
      "rawRecordSha256": "86161b7ae2b3dd1c1e6d20be7957acbbc79adf4f112f1c624b030c64a232c590",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 438241
    }
  ],
  "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 kibe →

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-a2liZQ