pips
/pɪps/
noun
Origin
Middle French
pepin — seed of a fruit
Overview
Meaning Now
- Small seeds, especially those found in fleshy fruits like apples, oranges, or grapes.
- A small spot on a playing card or domino representing its value.
- A minor ailment or fit of low spirits.
Literal older meaning
small seed
Language path
Latin → Middle French → English
Earliest form
pippin
Earliest period
16th century
Journey
The term likely arrived in English via 'pippin', an apple cultivar, before being clipped to 'pip' to refer generally to seeds of various fruits. Its use in card games ('pips') emerged in the late 19th century based on the resemblance of spots to small seeds.
Evolution
- Old French (12th century)
pepin
“seed of a fruit”
Origin uncertain, likely from an unrecorded Gallo-Romance base.
- Middle French (15th century)
pipin
“seed of a fruit”
- Early Modern English (16th century)
pippin
“fruit seed”
Used initially for the seed, later applied to the fruit itself.
- Modern English (19th century)
pips
“plural of pip; seeds or spots”
Semantic extension to card/domino spots and figurative ailments.
Connections
Word parts
pip
root
seed
-s
ending
plural marker
Related across languages
French
pépins
seeds
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Related to pips
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.