Added 2 October 2026
kick
/kɪk/ verb
In Latin: calcitrō Wiktionary
verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about kick at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
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To strike or hit with the foot or other extremity of the leg.
Did you kick your brother?
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To make a sharp jerking movement of the leg, as to strike something.
He enjoyed the simple pleasure of watching the kickline kick.
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To direct to a particular place by a blow with the foot or leg.
Kick the ball into the goal.
noun
verb
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To be emphatically excellent.
That band really kicks.
Origin
From Middle English kyken (“to strike out with the foot”), from Old Norse kikna (“to sink at the knees”) and keikja (“to bend backwards”) (compare Old Norse keikr (“bent backwards, the belly jutting forward”)), from Proto-Germanic *kaikaz (“bent backwards”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Proto-Germanic *kī-, *kij- (“to split, dodge, swerve sidewards”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵeyH- (“to sprout, shoot”). Compare also Dutch kijken (“to look”), Middle Low German kīken (“to look, watch”). See keek.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)