English word origin

Etymology of steak

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.

Unnumbered source etymology · variant 1/2

Original entry ↗

verb

To cook (something, especially fish) like or as a steak.

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

From Middle English steike, from Old Norse steik (“roast; meat roasted on a stick”). The verb is either from the noun or from steikja (“to roast”). The modern pronunciation shows an irregular change of Early Modern English /ɛː/ to /eɪ/ in the standard language; contrast this with the development of other words such as speak and wreak.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inherited-form mentionsteikeenm
Derivation mentionsteiknon

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:steike<ety:bor<non:steik>>"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old Norse\", \"term\" : \"steik\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"non\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"steike\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"steak\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"steak\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "steike"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English steike"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "steik",
        "4": "",
        "5": "roast; meat roasted on a stick"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse steik (“roast; meat roasted on a stick”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:steike<ety:bor<non:steik>>"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "steike",
      "steike#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "steik",
      "steik#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "steikja",
      "steikja#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "speak",
      "speak#English"
    ],
    [
      "wreak",
      "wreak#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To cook (something, especially fish) like or as a steak."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "2c8644f4b3aeaf694152ab44721d5fb155d93e6972e1eab365411daeecf8f43d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "5c3bf8607aef01f22b1e350281be0a83c1b562547987a776deaeb9259d521ad0",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 239931
    }
  ],
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}

Unnumbered source etymology · variant 2/2

Original entry ↗

noun

Beefsteak: a slice of beef, broiled or cut for broiling. · A relatively large, thick slice or slab cut from another animal, a vegetable, etc. · A slice of meat cut across the grain (perpendicular to the spine) from a fish.

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

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Inherited-form mentionsteikeenm
Derivation mentionsteiknon

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:steike<ety:bor<non:steik>>"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old Norse\", \"term\" : \"steik\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"non\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"steike\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"steak\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"steak\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "steike"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English steike"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "non",
        "3": "steik",
        "4": "",
        "5": "roast; meat roasted on a stick"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse steik (“roast; meat roasted on a stick”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:steike<ety:bor<non:steik>>"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "steike",
      "steike#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "steik",
      "steik#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "steikja",
      "steikja#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "speak",
      "speak#English"
    ],
    [
      "wreak",
      "wreak#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "lang_code": "nl",
      "word": "steak",
      "raw_tags": [
        "reshaped by analogy or addition of morphemes"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "French",
      "lang_code": "fr",
      "word": "steak",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Galician",
      "lang_code": "gl",
      "word": "estique",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "German",
      "lang_code": "de",
      "word": "Steak",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Gulf Arabic",
      "lang_code": "afb",
      "word": "سْتيك",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "stēk"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Hebrew",
      "lang_code": "he",
      "word": "סטייק",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "steyk"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Indonesian",
      "lang_code": "id",
      "word": "steik",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "lang_code": "ja",
      "word": "ステーキ",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "sutēki"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Korean",
      "lang_code": "ko",
      "word": "스테이크",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "seuteikeu"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Macedonian",
      "lang_code": "mk",
      "word": "стек",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "stek"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Malay",
      "lang_code": "ms",
      "word": "stik",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Persian",
      "lang_code": "fa",
      "word": "استیک",
      "raw_tags": [
        "reshaped by analogy or addition of morphemes"
      ],
      "roman": "esteyk"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Pohnpeian",
      "lang_code": "pon",
      "word": "sdeik",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Polish",
      "lang_code": "pl",
      "word": "stek",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Swahili",
      "lang_code": "sw",
      "word": "steki",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Swazi",
      "lang_code": "ss",
      "word": "siteki",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ]
    },
    {
      "lang": "Russian",
      "lang_code": "ru",
      "word": "стейк",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "stejk"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Thai",
      "lang_code": "th",
      "word": "สเต็ก",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "sà-dték"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Ukrainian",
      "lang_code": "uk",
      "word": "стейк",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "stejk"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Yiddish",
      "lang_code": "yi",
      "word": "סטייק",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "roman": "steyk"
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Beefsteak: a slice of beef, broiled or cut for broiling.",
        "A relatively large, thick slice or slab cut from another animal, a vegetable, etc.",
        "A slice of meat cut across the grain (perpendicular to the spine) from a fish."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable",
        "broadly"
      ],
      "recordId": "8207a8cc671c918696b2a8947f74b931ffc08dd707a667baca576a84d3eb3f4d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "cd559ad05383bcf287d6246c8d87f86431ec28626053c0da8f5c37653cd7eaee",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 239930
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    "lexicalSenses": 0,
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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 steak →

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-c3RlYWs