*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of kiss

From Middle English kissen, kussen, from Old English cyssan (“to kiss”), from Proto-West Germanic *kussijan, from Proto-Germanic *kussijaną (“to kiss”). Cognates include Saterland Frisian küsje, Dutch kussen, German Low

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 ↗
verb

To touch with the lips or press the lips against, usually to show love or affection or passion, or as part of a greeting. · To (cause to) touch lightly or slightly; to come into contact. · Of two or more people, to touch each other's lips together, usually to express love or affection or passion. · To treat with fondness.

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

From Middle English kissen, kussen, from Old English cyssan (“to kiss”), from Proto-West Germanic *kussijan, from Proto-Germanic *kussijaną (“to kiss”). Cognates include Saterland Frisian küsje, Dutch kussen, German Low German küssen, German küssen, Danish and Norwegian Bokmål kysse, Faroese, Icelandic, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish kyssa. Compare Proto-Indo-European *ku-, *kus- (probably imitative), with descendants including Ancient Greek κύσσω (kússō), poetic form of κύσω (kúsō, “to kiss”), and Hittite [script needed] (kuwassanzi, “they kiss”).

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": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:kissen",
        "id": "verb"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#derived_terms|Derived]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*kw(e)s-\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*kussaz\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" }, { \"id\" : \"denominative\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"intransitive verbs\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-yéti\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*-janą\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*kussijaną\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" }, { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*koss\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" }, { \"id\" : \"denominative\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"is_duplicate\" : true, \"children\" : [ ], \"id\" : \"denominative\", \"status\" : { \"1\" : \"gem-pro\", \"2\" : \":inh\", \"3\" : \"ine-pro:*-yéti<id:intransitive verbs>\", \"id\" : \"denominative\" }, \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*-janą\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*-jan\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"afeq\", \"is_invisible\" : \"all\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*kussijan\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"cyssan\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"kissen\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"kiss\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"verb\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"kiss\" id=\"English:_verb\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "kissen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English kissen"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "cyssan",
        "t": "to kiss"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English cyssan (“to kiss”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*kussijan"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *kussijan"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*kussijaną",
        "t": "to kiss"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *kussijaną (“to kiss”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "stq",
        "2": "küsje"
      },
      "expansion": "Saterland Frisian küsje"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "kussen"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch kussen"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nds-de",
        "2": "küssen"
      },
      "expansion": "German Low German küssen"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "küssen"
      },
      "expansion": "German küssen"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da,nb",
        "2": "kysse"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish and Norwegian Bokmål kysse"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "fo,is,nn,sv",
        "2": "kyssa"
      },
      "expansion": "Faroese, Icelandic, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish kyssa"
    },
    {
      "name": "ncog",
      "args": {
        "1": "ine-pro",
        "2": "*ku-"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *ku-"
    },
    {
      "name": "onomatopoeic",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "title": "imitative"
      },
      "expansion": "imitative"
    },
    {
      "name": "ncog",
      "args": {
        "1": "grc",
        "2": "κύσσω"
      },
      "expansion": "Ancient Greek κύσσω (kússō)"
    },
    {
      "name": "ncog",
      "args": {
        "1": "hit",
        "2": "",
        "tr": "kuwassanzi",
        "t": "they kiss"
      },
      "expansion": "Hittite [script needed] (kuwassanzi, “they kiss”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:kissen",
        "id": "verb"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "kissen",
      "kissen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "kussen",
      "kussen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "cyssan",
      "cyssan#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*kussijan",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/kussijan"
    ],
    [
      "*kussijaną",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/kussijaną"
    ],
    [
      "küsje",
      "küsje#Saterland_Frisian"
    ],
    [
      "kussen",
      "kussen#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "küssen",
      "küssen#Low_German"
    ],
    [
      "küssen",
      "küssen#German"
    ],
    [
      "Danish",
      "kysse#Danish"
    ],
    [
      "kysse",
      "kysse#Norwegian_Bokmål"
    ],
    [
      "Faroese",
      "kyssa#Faroese"
    ],
    [
      "Icelandic",
      "kyssa#Icelandic"
    ],
    [
      "Norwegian Nynorsk",
      "kyssa#Norwegian_Nynorsk"
    ],
    [
      "kyssa",
      "kyssa#Swedish"
    ],
    [
      "*ku-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ku-"
    ],
    [
      "*kus-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/kus-"
    ],
    [
      "κύσσω",
      "κύσσω#Ancient_Greek"
    ],
    [
      "κύσω",
      "κύσω#Ancient_Greek"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Esperanto",
      "lang_code": "eo",
      "word": "kisi",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "lang_code": "ja",
      "word": "キス",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "kisu"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Korean",
      "lang_code": "ko",
      "word": "키스",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "kiseu"
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To touch with the lips or press the lips against, usually to show love or affection or passion, or as part of a greeting.",
        "To (cause to) touch lightly or slightly; to come into contact.",
        "Of two or more people, to touch each other's lips together, usually to express love or affection or passion.",
        "To treat with fondness."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive",
        "ambitransitive",
        "reciprocal",
        "archaic"
      ],
      "recordId": "1443593a74e48461c4db4ef1a81d7007fd8ad76e6d602f63108398d40c64a58d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "2d6d8d59b6dcb61f67a92be89660e2d76c983b7134993e287b2d6ea2872918e9",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 148509
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A touch with the lips, usually to express love or affection, or as a greeting. · An 'X' mark placed at the end of a letter or other type of message, signifying the bestowal of a kiss from the sender to the receiver. · A type of filled chocolate candy, shaped as if someone had kissed the top. See Hershey's Kisses. · The alignment of two bodies in the solar system such that they have the same longitude when seen from Earth; conjunction.

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

From Middle English kis, kys, kus, forms of cos influenced by kissen, from Old English coss, from Proto-West Germanic *koss, from Proto-Germanic *kussaz.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

  • Inherited-form mentionkisenm
  • Inherited-form mentioncossang
  • Inherited-form mention*kossgmw-pro
  • Inherited-form mention*kussazgem-pro

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.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "kis"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English kis"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "coss"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English coss"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*koss"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *koss"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*kussaz"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *kussaz"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "kis",
      "kis#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "kys",
      "kys#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "kus",
      "kus#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "cos",
      "cos#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "kissen",
      "kissen#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "coss",
      "coss#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*koss",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/koss"
    ],
    [
      "*kussaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/kussaz"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A touch with the lips, usually to express love or affection, or as a greeting.",
        "An 'X' mark placed at the end of a letter or other type of message, signifying the bestowal of a kiss from the sender to the receiver.",
        "A type of filled chocolate candy, shaped as if someone had kissed the top. See Hershey's Kisses.",
        "The alignment of two bodies in the solar system such that they have the same longitude when seen from Earth; conjunction."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "e0b5ae81f5165bee17fb691165864841870fd41c78e31d3d843bd4288de6b7e7",
      "rawRecordSha256": "bc3968578304f19a914e0f7b4d76152b483f2dbcaa0f57fdcdcc261e1a438540",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 148510
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 1,
    "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 kiss →

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-a2lzcw