English word origin

Etymology of peng

From romanizations of the Mandarin pronunciation of Chinese 鵬 /鹏 (péng).

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 legendary enormous bird.

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

From romanizations of the Mandarin pronunciation of Chinese 鵬 /鹏 (péng).

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Borrowed-form mention鵬zh

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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    {
      "name": "wp",
      "args": {
        "1": "+ (mythology)"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "cmn",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Mandarin"
    },
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "zh",
        "3": "鵬",
        "tr": "péng"
      },
      "expansion": "Chinese 鵬 /鹏 (péng)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "鵬",
      "鵬#Chinese"
    ],
    [
      "鹏",
      "鹏#Chinese"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A legendary enormous bird."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Chinese"
      ],
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

adj

Iced; with ice added.

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

From Hokkien 冰 (peng, “ice”).

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "nan-hbl",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Hokkien"
    },
    {
      "name": "zh-l",
      "args": {
        "1": "冰",
        "2": "ice",
        "tr": "peng"
      },
      "expansion": "冰 (peng, “ice”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "冰",
      "冰#Chinese"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Iced; with ice added."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Manglish",
        "Singlish",
        "attributive",
        "not-comparable"
      ],
      "recordId": "4c3c01f07560930aabec141ad424a78e0c52a2d946ab126a21611fdfcb103510",
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗

adj

Physically or sexually attractive. · Of the highest quality; excellent; splendid.

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

Etymology unknown, attested in the UK c. 2000. Documented possibilities include: * From Jamaican Creole kushempeng (“high-quality marijuana”). * From a clipping of penguin (“flightless sea bird”), deemed quintessentially cute. * From Cantonese 又平又靚 /又平又靓 (jau⁶ peng⁴ jau⁶ leng³, “cheap and also good quality”), see also 平靚正 /平靓正 (peng⁴ leng³ zeng³, “low cost, high quality”), often heard from hawkers in major Chinatowns.

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Derivation mentionkushempengjam
Derivation mention又平又靚yue · cheap and also good quality

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "title": "Etymology unknown"
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      "expansion": "Etymology unknown"
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    {
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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "jam",
        "3": "kushempeng",
        "4": "",
        "5": "high-quality marijuana"
      },
      "expansion": "Jamaican Creole kushempeng (“high-quality marijuana”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "clipping",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "penguin",
        "3": "",
        "4": "flightless sea bird",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "clipping of penguin (“flightless sea bird”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "yue",
        "3": "又平又靚",
        "tr": "jau⁶ peng⁴ jau⁶ leng³",
        "t": "cheap and also good quality"
      },
      "expansion": "Cantonese 又平又靚 /又平又靓 (jau⁶ peng⁴ jau⁶ leng³, “cheap and also good quality”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
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    ],
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      "penguin",
      "penguin#English"
    ],
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      "又",
      "又#Cantonese"
    ],
    [
      "平",
      "平#Cantonese"
    ],
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      "靚",
      "靚#Cantonese"
    ],
    [
      "又",
      "又#Cantonese"
    ],
    [
      "平",
      "平#Cantonese"
    ],
    [
      "靓",
      "靓#Cantonese"
    ],
    [
      "平靚正",
      "平靚正#Cantonese"
    ],
    [
      "平靓正",
      "平靓正#Cantonese"
    ],
    [
      "Chinatown",
      "Chinatown"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Physically or sexually attractive.",
        "Of the highest quality; excellent; splendid."
      ],
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        "Multicultural-London-English"
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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 peng →

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-cGVuZw