food

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   The things that people and animals eat to stay alive.

   The innkeeper brought them food and drink.

2. 2
   noun

   A particular type of thing that is eaten.

   Cheese is one of my favourite foods.

3. 3
   noun

   Something that provides ideas or thought.

   His inspiring speech gave us plenty of food for thought.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Food has been recorded since the beginning of the 11th century and is related to the Old English words fodder and foster, the latter originally meaning “feed” or “nourish.” Its use was later extended from physical nourishment to intellectual nourishment, as in food for thought.

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *peh₂-der. Proto-Germanic *fōdô Old English fōda Middle English fode English food From Middle English fode, foode, from Old English fōda (“food”), from Proto-West Germanic *fōdō, from Proto-Germanic *fōdô (“food”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂- (“to guard, graze, feed”). Cognate with Scots fuid (“food”), Low German föde, vöde (“food”), West Frisian fiedsel (“food”), Dutch voedsel (“food”) Danish føde (“food”), Swedish föda (“food”), Icelandic fæða, fæði (“food”), Gothic 𐍆𐍉𐌳𐌴𐌹𐌽𐍃 (fōdeins, “food”), Latin pānis (“bread, food”), Latin pāscō (“feed, nourish”, ve…

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External links

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• Cambridge Dictionary
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