Words with Surprisingly Naughty Origins

These nine words don't seem naughty, but their meanings and origins are far from innocent.

1. Gymnasium

The naughtiest thing most of us might remember about the gymnasium is skipping gym class to avoid getting pelted in dodgeball, but this word has roots in more than just exercise. Gymnasium comes from the Greek gumnazein, which means “to exercise naked.” (Those who suffer from gymnophobia have a fear of nudity, not a fear of the treadmill.) Gumnazein may seem like an oddball word to piece together until you remember that the Ancient Greeks were also the inventors of the original Olympic Games, where nude exercising was nothing to shake a caduceus at.

2. Mastodon

Surely, the mighty mastodon must have a name befitting its humongous size and razor-sharp tusks. But what do masto- and -don mean, exactly? Massive and daunting? Nope—breast-tooth. When 19th century French naturalist Georges Cuvier examined fossilized mastodon teeth, he found projections that he said looked “nipple-like.” He chose the woolly beast’s name from the Greek masto (“breast”) and odont (“tooth”).

3. Partridge

A partridge is an unremarkable game bird or a living gift that sits in a pear tree, right? Its name should mean something similar to “tasty bird” or “eccentric gift.” Instead, partridge originates from the Greek verb perdesthai, which means “to break wind.” Partridge became the “flatulence bird” because its weight and wing shape cause it to make a low, whirring noise when it takes off, creating a rather unfortunate sound.

4. Forlorn

When you imagine someone who is forlorn, you probably picture a person who is sad and dejected, abandoned by friends. The older version of this word, however, had a much deeper meaning. Forlorn comes from the Old English word forloren, which means “depraved, morally abandoned.” To the Anglo-Saxons, if you were forloren, more than just your friends had abandoned you—your very moral fiber had abandoned you, as well. You were more than just sad; you were doomed.

5. Musk

Musk comes from the Sanskrit word muṣka, which translates to "testicle." While humans tend to associate musk with cologne, animals, such as the male musk deer, use this pungent substance to communicate. Musk doesn’t play a direct role in reproduction, but it seems to have earned its “family jewel” name because the deer’s musk sac looks a lot like part of the family crest.

6. Orchid

While testicles usually only come in twos, the tendency to name things after them seems endless. This entry comes from the Ancient Greek word órkhis. According to some, an Ancient Greek man took a look at either the roots or rhizomes of an orchid and thought, “Wow, those look a lot like what I saw when I was putting on my tunic this morning.”

7. Punk

No one is sure who invented the word punk or what its etymology is, but its first recorded use was during Shakespeare’s time. But when the Bard used this word, he wasn’t talking about someone with a mohawk hairdo or a particular type of music. He was talking about female prostitutes.

Shakespeare used punk or an alternate spelling in several of his works, but one of the most notable mentions appears in All’s Well That Ends Well, when he used the colorful term “taffety punk” to describe a well-dressed prostitute. “Taffety Punk” has since become a popular name for theater groups.

By the 18th century, punk’s meaning had shifted to mean a younger man whom an older man kept around for sexual purposes. A song from that time called “Women’s Complaint to Venus” includes the chilling lyrics: “The Beaus ... at night make a punk of him that's first drunk.”

By the early 20th century, punk meant “young hobo,” and soon, the word had evolved to mean any young person who was generally up to no good. By the 1970s, music reviewer Dave Marsh discussed a band called ? and the Mysterians in Flint, Michigan, and called the music they were playing “Punk Rock.”

While not the first to discuss this music (the band Suicide advertised their “Punk music” earlier, while Ed Sanders referred to one of his albums as “punk rock” in the Chicago Tribune around the same time), soon the word would expand to encompass a new genre.

8. Porcelain

Porcelain comes from the old Italian word porcellana, which means “cowrie shell,” because porcelain is smooth and shiny like a cowrie shell. It would be perfectly innocent if the story ended there, but it doesn’t. The word porcellana comes from the Italian word porcella, which is a young sow. Cowrie shells are thought to have gotten their name because someone decided that they were small, smooth, and shiny … just like a young sow’s vulva.

9. Pasta alla Puttanesca

This flavorful tomato and anchovy dish is popular from Naples to Los Angeles. What many of us aren’t aware of, though, is the literal meaning of this dish’s name. While puttanesca sauce is a combination of tomatoes, anchovies, olives, and capers, its name doesn’t include any of those ingredients. Instead, it literally translates to “pasta in the style of prostitutes.”

There are a couple of theories as to why. One popular one: The powerful aroma of simmering puttanesca sauce would entice clients to the Italian puttanas’ doors and help them increase trade, or perhaps this easy sauce was quick to whip up between clients. Another is that, because puttana is a sort of catch-all word in Italian slang, saying “I made pasta alla puttanesca” is like saying “I made pasta and threw in whatever.”

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