Etymograph

English

nick

Nick comes from late Middle English nik ‘notch, tally’, whose further origin is unknown.

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500nik1‘notch, tally’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1603nick1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English nick
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1603, Michel de Montaigne, We Taste Nothing Purely: “When I imagin man fraughted with al the commodities…”.

Lineage

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500nikWiktionary, English nick‘notch, tally’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1603nickWiktionary, English nick. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1603, Michel de Montaigne, We Taste Nothing Purely: “When I imagin man fraughted with al the commodities…”

The story

The noun is derived from Late Middle English nik (‘notch, tally; nock of an arrow’). Its further etymology is unknown; a connection with nock (‘notch in a bow to hold the bowstring; notch at the rear of an arrow that fits the bowstring; cleft in the buttocks’) has not been clearly established.uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Old French niche

niche

Today it means

noun A particular place or point considered as marked by a nick; the exact point or critical moment.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “nick”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Middle English nik / nick

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