vodka
/ˈvɒdkə/
noun
Origin
Old East Slavic
voda — water
Overview
Meaning Now
- A clear, distilled alcoholic beverage typically made from fermented cereal grains or potatoes.
Literal older meaning
little water
Language path
Old East Slavic → Russian → English
Earliest form
vodka
Earliest period
14th–15th century
Journey
Originally used in Slavic languages to describe medicinal tinctures or herbal preparations, the term shifted in meaning in Russia during the 18th century to refer specifically to the distilled spirit known today.
Evolution
- Proto-Slavic
*woda
“water”
- Old East Slavic
vodka
“little water / medicinal preparation”
Diminutive form of 'voda'
- 18th century Russian
vodka
“distilled grain spirit”
Semantic shift from medicine to popular spirit
- Late 19th century English
vodka
“Russian spirit”
Loanword from Russian
Connections
Word parts
vod-
root
water
-ka
suffix
diminutive
Related across languages
Polish
wódka
vodka
Ukrainian
horilka
distilled spirit
Related words
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Related to vodka
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.