English
sweetbread
Apparently from sweet + bread, though the reason is not immediately evident.
The story
Apparently from sweet + bread, though the reason is not immediately evident. Possibly connected with Dutch zwezerik, whose etymology is also unclear.uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain.
Today it means
noun The pancreas or thymus gland of an animal, especially a lamb or calf, as food.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “sweetbread”. 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 / sweetbread