By Jason Pickett
Andro- Latin from Greek andr meaning male
Bachelor- 13c., from O.Fr. bacheler "knight bachelor," a young squire in training for knighthood, probably from M.L. baccalarius "vassal farmer," one who helps or tends a baccalaria "section of land." Or from L. baculum "a stick," since the squire would practice with a staff, not a sword. Meaning evolved from "knight in training" to "junior member of a guild or university" to "unmarried man" 14c.
Bastard- 1223, from O.Fr., "child of a nobleman by a woman other than his wife," probably from fils de bast "packsaddle son," meaning a child conceived on an improvised bed (saddles often doubled as beds while traveling), with pejorative ending -art. Alternate possibly is that the word is from P.Gmc. *banstiz "barn," suggestive of low origin. Figurative sense is from 1552; bastardize is from 1587.
Boy- 1154, boie "servant, commoner, knave, boy," possibly from O.Fr. embuie "one fettered," from V.L. *imboiare, from L. boia "leg iron, yoke, leather collar," from Gk. boeiai dorai "ox hides." Used slightingly of young men in M.E. Meaning "male negro slave of any age" attested from 1609. Boyfriend is early 20c
Brother- O.E. broþor, from P.Gmc. *brothar, from I.E. base *bhrater. Alternate pl. brethren was predominant c.1200-1600s, but survived only in religious usage.
Buck- O.E. bucca "male goat," from P.Gmc. *bukkon, probably from I.E. base *bhugo. Verb is 1848, apparently with a sense of "jump like a buck." Meaning of "dollar" is 1856, Amer.Eng., abbreviation of buckskin, a unit of trade among Indians and Europeans in frontier days, attested in this sense from 1748. Buckshot is first recorded 1447; bucktooth is from 1753. Pass the buck is first recorded 1912, Amer.Eng., from buck "article put in the jackpot in a poker game and taken by the winner as a reminder to order another jackpot."
Chap- 1577, "customer," short for obsolete chapman (see cheap). Colloquial sense of "lad, fellow" is first attested 1716.
Chauvinist- 1870, "exaggerated, blind patriotism," from Fr. chauvinisme (1843), from Nicholas Chauvin, soldier, possibly legendary, of Napoleon's Grand Armee, notoriously attached to the Empire long after it was history. Popularized in Fr. 1831 through Cogniard's vaudeville "La Cocarde Tricolore," Meaning extended to "sexism" via male chauvinism (1970).
Chivalry- 13c., from O.Fr. chevalerie "horsemanship," from chevaler "knight," from M.L. caballarius "horseman," from L. caballus (see cavalry). From "mounted knight," meaning stretched 14c. to "courtly behavior."
Cock- O.E. cocc, O.Fr. coq, O.N. kokkr, all of echoic origin. Slang sense of "penis" is attested since 1618 (cock-teaser is from 1891). Cocky "arrogantly pert" (1768) originally mean "lecherous" (16c.), modern sense of "vain" is 18c. A cocker spaniel (1823) was trained to start woodcocks. Cock of a faucet first recorded c.1425; of a gun, 1566, hence half-cocked "with the cock lifted to the first catch, at which position the trigger does not act." Cock-and-bull is first recorded 1621, perhaps an allusion to Aesop's fables, with their incredible talking animals, or to a particular story, now forgotten. Fr. has parallel _expression coq-à-l'âne.
Dad- recorded from 1500, but probably much older, from child's speech, nearly universal and probably prehistoric
Dick- 1553, rhyming nickname for "Richard," one of the commonest Eng. names, it has long been a synonym for "fellow," and so most of the slang senses are probably very old, but naturally hard to find in the surviving records. The meaning "penis" is attested from 1880s in British army slang.
Drag queen- 1440, from O.N. draga, or a dial. variant of O.E. dragan "to draw." Meaning "to take a puff" (of a cigarette, etc.) is from 1914. Sense of "annoying, boring person or thing" is 1813; sense of "women's clothing worn by a man" is 19c. theater slang, from the sensation of long skirts trailing on the floor; drag queen is from 1941.
Eunuch- early 15c., from Gk. eunoukhos "castrated man," originally "guard of the bedchamber or harem," from euno-, comb. form of eune "bed" + -okhos, from stem of ekhein "to have, hold."
Faggot- 1279, from O.Fr. fagot "bundle of sticks," from It. faggotto, dim. of V.L. *facus, from L. fascis "bundle of wood" (see fasces). Used from 1591 through 19c. as a contemptuous term for "woman" (cf. baggage), especially an old and unpleasant one, which probably is the source of Amer.Eng. derogatory term for "male homosexual" (1914; shortened form fag is from 1921). It may also be reinforced by Yiddish faygele "homosexual," lit. "little bird;" and by Brit. university slang fag "boy servant of an upperclassman" (with suggestions of "catamite"), from fag (v.).
Fairy- 13c., from O.Fr. faerie "land of fairies, meeting of fairies, enchantment, magic," from fae "fay," from L. fata (pl.) "the Fates." The slang meaning "effeminate male homosexual" is first recorded 1895. Faerie was introduced by Edmund Spencer as a deliberate archaism in "The Faerie Queen" (1590). Fairy tale (1749) translates Fr. Conte de fées
Father- O.E. fæder, from P.Gmc. *fader, from I.E. *p@ter, presumably from baby-speak sound like pa
Fellatio- L. fellatus, pp. of fellare "to suck," from I.E. base *dhe-. The sexual partner performing fellatio is a fellator; if female, a fellatrice or fellatrix.
Fellow- O.E. feolaga "partner," from O.N. felagi, from fe "money" + verbal base denoting "lay." Sense is of "one who puts down money with another in a joint venture." Used familiarly since M.E. for "man, male person," but not etymologically masculine
Fraternity- early 14c., "body of men associated by common interest," from O.Fr. fraternité, from L. fraternitatem (nom. fraternitas), from fraternus "brotherly," from frater "brother," from I.E. *bhrater. College sense is from 1840s. Fraternize is attested from 1611, used oddly by World War II armed forces to mean "have sex with women from enemy countries;"
Fruit- 12c., from O.Fr. fruit, from L. fructus "fruit, produce, profit," from frug-, stem of frui "to use, enjoy." Older sense preserved in fruits of one's labor. Originally in Eng. meaning vegetables as well. Meaning "odd person, eccentric" is from 1910; that of "male homosexual" is from 1935.
Gay- 1178, from O.Fr. gai "gay, merry," perhaps from Frank. (cf. O.H.G. gahi "sudden, impulsive"). Slang for "homosexual" is 1951, apparently shortened from gey cat "homosexual boy," c.1935 in a dictionary of "Underworld & Prison Slang;" used as far back as 1893 in Amer.Eng. for "young hobo," one who is new on the road and usually in the company of an older tramp, with catamite connotations (gey is a Scot. variant of gay). Gey cats were also said to be tramps who offered sexual services to women, and the word gay in the 1890s had an overall tinge of promiscuity -- a gay house was a brothel. The suggestion of immorality in the word can be traced back to 1637
Gentlemen- 12c., from O.Fr. gentil "high-born, noble," from L. gentilis "of the same family or clan," from gens (gen. gentis) "race, clan," from root of gignere "beget" (see kin), from I.E. base *gen- "produce." Sense of "gracious, kind" (now obsolete) first recorded c.1280; that of "mild, tender" is 16c plus man.
Gigolo- 1922, from Fr. gigolo, from gigolette "dancing girl, prostitute," related to M.E. giglot "villainous man," from O.Fr.
Groom- M.E. grome "male child, boy, youth," perhaps from O.E. *groma, related to growan "grow," or O.Fr. grommet "servant," or O.N. gromr "man." The fact is, it appeared 13c. and nobody knows from whence. The verb is first attested 1809; the transfered sense is from 1843. Sense of "male servant who attends to horses" is 17c. The wedding groom, short for bridegroom, is c.1600 but from a different word, O.E. guma "man" (see bridegroom).
Guy- "fellow," 1847, earlier (1836) "grotesquely or poorly dressed person," originally (1806) "effigy of Guy Fawkes," leader of the Gunpowder Plot to blow up British king and Parliament (Nov. 5, 1605).
He- O.E. he (see paradigm of O.E. third pers. pronoun at bottom of page), from P.Gmc. *hiz, from P.Gmc. base *khi-, from I.E. *ki-, the "this, here" (as opposed to "that, there") root, and thus the source of the third person pronouns in O.E. The feminine, hio, was replaced in early M.E. by forms from other stems (see she), while the h- wore off O.E. neut. hit to make modern it. Slang he-man "masculine fellow" is from 1859
Him- O.E. him, originally dative masc. and neut. of he, in M.E. it replaced hine as masc. accusative. The dative roots of the -m ending are retained in Ger. (ihm) and Du. (hem). Hine sill persists, barely, as the South England dialectal 'un, 'n for "him."
His- O.E. his (gen. of he,), from P.Gmc. *khisa. Originally also the neut. possessive pronoun, but replaced in that sense c.1600 by its. In M.E., hisis was tried for the absolute pronoun (cf. her/hers), but it failed to stick; his'n has been dialectal in this sense since late M.E., apparently on model of my/mine.
Husband- O.E. husbonda "male head of a household," probably from O.N. husbondi "master of the house," from hus "house" + bondi "householder, dweller, freeholder, peasant," from buandi, prp. of bua "to dwell" The sense of "peasant farmer" is preserved in husbandry. In M.E., replaced O.E. wer as companion of wif, a sad loss for Eng. poetry. The verb "manage thriftily" is 1440, from the noun in the obsolete sense of "steward."
King- O.E. cyning, from P.Gmc. *kuninggaz. Possibly related to O.E. cynn "family, race" (see kin), making a king originally a "leader of the people;" or from a related root suggesting "noble birth," making a king originally "one who descended from noble birth." The sociological and ideological implications make this a topic of much debate
Lad- 13c., ladde "foot soldier," later "young male servant," from a Scand. language (cf. Norw. -ladd, in compounds for "young man").
Lord- O.E. hlaford "master of a household, ruler, superior," also "God" (though drihten was used more often), lit. "one who guards the loaves," from hlaf "bread, loaf" + weard "keeper, guardian, ward" (see lady). An O.E. word for servant was hlafæta, lit. "loaf-eater."
Macho- 1928, from Sp. macho "male," from L. masculus (see masculine).
Male- 1373, from O.Fr. masle, from L. masculus "masculine, male," dim. of mas (gen. maris) "male person or animal, male."
Man- O.E. man, mann "human being, person," from P.Gmc. *manwaz. Plural men shows effects of i-mutation. Sense of "adult male" is late (c.1000); O.E. used wer and wif to distinguish the sexes, but wer began to disappear late 13c. and was replaced by man. Universal sense of the word remains in mankind, from O.E. mancynn, from man + cynn "kin;" and in manslaughter, from O.E. mannslæht (Anglian), mannslieht (W.Saxon), from mann + slæht, slieht "act of killing." Similarly, L. had homo "human being" and vir "adult male human being," but they merged in V.L., with homo extended to both senses. A like evolution took place in Slavic languages, and in some of them the word has narrowed to mean "husband." Man-of-war was originally a soldier, meaning "vessel equipped for warfare" is from 1484. The Portugese man-of-war is so called for its sail-like crest.
Masculine- c.1350, from O.Fr. masculin, from L. masculinus "male, of masculine gender," from masculus, dim. of mas (gen. maris) "male person, male."
Master- O.E. mægester, from L. magister "chief, head, director, teacher," infl. in M.E. by O.Fr. maistre, from L. magister, contrastive adj. from magis (adv.) "more," comp. of magnus "great." Masterpiece is 1605, borrowed from Du. meesterstuk "work by which a craftsman attains the rank of master."
Mister- 1447, unaccented variant of master.
Paramour- early 14c., noun use of adv. phrase par amour (13c.) "passionately, with strong love or desire," from Anglo-Fr. par amour, from acc. of amor "love." Originally a term for Christ (by women) or the Virgin Mary (by men), it came to mean "darling, sweetheart" mid-14c. and "mistress, concubine, clandestine lover" c.1390.
Paternal- c.1433, from O.Fr. paternal "of a father," from M.L. paternalis, from L. paternus "of a father," from pater (see father). Paternalism is first recorded 1881; paternalistic is 1880s.
Penis- 1676, perhaps from Fr. pénis or directly from L. penis "penis," lit. "tail." The proper plural is penes.
Phallus- 1613, from L. phallus, from Gk. phallos "penis," also "carving or image of an erect penis (symbolizing the generative power in nature) used in the cult of Dionysus." Related to phalle "whale." Phallic (1789) is from Gk. phallikos, from phallos.
Philanderer- 1737, from Philander, popular name for a lover in stories, drama, and poetry, from Gk. adj. philandros "with love for people," perhaps mistaken as meaning "loving man," from phil- "loving" + andr-, stem of aner "man." Philanderer "male flirt" is from 1841.
Pimp- 1607, perhaps from M.Fr. pimper "to dress elegantly," prp. of pimpant "alluring in dress, seductive."
Prick- O.E. prica "point, puncture, particle." The verb is O.E. prician "to prick," from P.Gmc. *prikojanan. Earliest recorded use for "penis" is 1598. My prick was used 16c.-17c. as a term of endearment by "immodest maids" for their boyfriends. To prick up one's ears is 1587, originally of animals with pointed ears.
Prince- 12c., from O.Fr. prince, from L. princeps (gen. principis) "first, chief, prince," lit. "that takes first" (adj.), from primus "first" (see prime) + root of capere "to take." Ger. cognate fürst, from O.H.G. furist "first," is apparently an imitation of the Latin form.
Queer- 1508, from Scottish, probably from Low Ger. (Brunswick dialect) queer "oblique, off-center," related to Ger. quer "oblique, perverse, odd," from O.H.G. twerh "oblique," from I.E. base *twerk- (related to thwart). The verb "to spoil, ruin" is first recorded 1812. Sense of "homosexual" first recorded 1922; the noun in this sense is 1935, from the adj
Scrotum- 1597, from L. scrotum, cognate with O.E. scrud "garment" (source of shroud).
Semen- 14c., from L. semen "seed," from root of serere "to sow."
Shaver- O.E. sceafan, from P.Gmc. *skabanan. Original strong verb status is preserved in past tense form shaven. The noun meaning "an act of shaving" is from 1838 (O.E. sceafa meant "tool for shaving"). Shaver "fellow, chap" is slang from 1592; phrase a close shave is from 1856, on notion of "a slight, grazing touch."
Sir- 13c., title of honor of a knight or baronet (until 17c. also a title of priests), variant of sire. Generalized as a respectful form of address by c.1350; used as a salutation at the beginning of letters from early 15c.
sire - 12c., from O.Fr. sire, from V.L. *seior, from L. senior "older, elder." The verb is 1611, from the noun.
Son- O.E. sunu "son," from P.Gmc. *sunuz, from I.E. *sunu-, *sunyu-. Sonny as a familiar form of address to one younger or inferior is from 1870. Son of a bitch is recorded from 1707; abbreviated form SOB from 1918.
Sperm- c.1375, probably from O.Fr. esperme, from L.L. sperma "seed, semen," from Gk. sperma "seed," from speirein "to sow, scatter," from I.E. *sper- "to strew."
Stripling- 14c., possibly from strip (n.) "long, narrow piece," on the notion of "one who is slender as a strip, whose figure is not yet filled out."
Testis- (pl. testes), 1704, from L. testis "testicle," a special application of testis "witness," presumably because it "bears witness" to virility (cf. Gk. parastates, lit. "one that stands by;" and Fr. slang témoins, lit. "witnesses"). c
Uncle- c.1300, from O.Fr. oncle, from L. avunculus "mother's brother," lit. "little grandfather," dim. of avus "grandfather," from root *aw- "grandparent." Replaced O.E. eam.
Virile- 1490, from M.Fr. viril, from L. virilis "of a man, manly," from vir "a man, a hero." Virility "period of manhood" is from 1586.