icicleyoudaoicibaDictYouDict[icicle 词源字典]
icicle: [14] Historically, icicle is a tautology, meaning literally ‘ice icicle’. It originated in Middle English as a compound of ice and ickel ‘icicle’. This word, which survived dialectally into the 20th century as ickle, goes back to Old English gicel, which in turn was descended from a prehistoric Germanic *jakulaz (source also of modern Icelandic jökull ‘glacier’).
[icicle etymology, icicle origin, 英语词源]
icicle (n.)youdaoicibaDictYouDict
early 14c., isykle, from is "ice" + ikel "icicle," from Old English gicel "icicle, ice" (rel. to cylegicel "cold ice"), from Proto-Germanic *jekilaz (cognates: Old Norse jaki "piece of ice," diminutive jökull "icicle, ice, glacier;" Old High German ihilla "icicle"), from PIE *yeg- "ice." Dialectal ickle "icicle" survived into 20c.