entry
bunion
/ˈbʌnjən/Painful swelling and deformity at the big-toe joint
From French, ultimately Germanic bunion (A lump or swelling).
from Proto-Germanic *bungô, *bunkô (“lump, clump, heap, crowd”)
from French buigne "bump on the head, swelling
+1 more sourcefrom Middle English bony, boni (“bunion, swelling”), perhaps Italian bubbone (augmented form of bugno (“beehive”)), or...
Word Ancestry
from Proto-Germanic *bungô, *bunkô (“lump, clump, heap, crowd”)
from French buigne "bump on the head, swelling
+1 more sourcefrom Middle English bony, boni (“bunion, swelling”), perhaps Italian bubbone (augmented form of bugno (“beehive”)), or...
Before it became a medical nuisance, this word was simply a name for a bump. Middle English speakers used bony or boni for a swelling, and the trail seems to run through Old French bugne, “a lump or knob,” with competing proposals involving Old Norse bunga and Italian bubbone. By 1718, East Anglian bunny—another word for a lump—had been reshaped into bunion, a surprisingly cute label for an increasingly uncomfortable anatomical bulge. The rabbit word bunny may be related in sound and history, but its exact ancestry is disputed, so the connection is more family resemblance than courtroom proof. A bunion is therefore, etymologically, a tiny “thick lump” wearing a medical name: remember the bump, and the word practically explains itself.
The Story
Before it became a medical nuisance, this word was simply a name for a bump. Middle English speakers used bony or boni for a swelling, and the trail seems to run through Old French bugne, “a lump or knob,” with competing proposals involving Old Norse bunga and Italian bubbone. By 1718, East Anglian bunny—another word for a lump—had been reshaped into bunion, a surprisingly cute label for an increasingly uncomfortable anatomical bulge. The rabbit word bunny may be related in sound and history, but its exact ancestry is disputed, so the connection is more family resemblance than courtroom proof. A bunion is therefore, etymologically, a tiny “thick lump” wearing a medical name: remember the bump, and the word practically explains itself.
Modern Usage
A crude slang term for unattractive lumps or calluses on the feet
Kin & Kindred
From 'bunion'·A lump or swelling, especially on the foot
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Free Dictionary
Urban Dictionary
Wikipedia
Wiktionary