English
swimcap
From swim + cap.
Proto-Indo-European *swem(bʰ)- ‘to be unsteady, move, swim’
Proto-Germanic *swimmaną ‘to swim’
Proto-West Germanic *swimman ‘to swim’
Old English swimman ‘to swim, float’
Middle English swymmen ‘to swim’
English swim
Latin caput ‘head’
Late Latin cappa ‘cap, hood, cape’
Proto-West Germanic *kappā ‘covering, hood, mantle’
Old English cæppe ‘cap, hood’
Middle English cappe ‘cap’
English cap
Today it means
noun A waterproof cap worn on the head while swimming.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “swimcap”. 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 / swimcap