Feudel

Meaning

a cloth for cleaning, especially a floorcloth

Synonyms

Scheuertuch

Aufnehmer

Scheuerlappen

Wischlappen

Wischtuch

Putzlappen

Lappen

Putztuch

Lumpen

Tuch

Translations

serpillière

wassingue

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈfɔɪ̯dl̩/

Etymology

Borrowed from Low German Feudel, Feul, Feil, either from or cognate with Dutch feil (“floorcloth”, attested 1616). Further origin uncertain. Ripuarian Fuddel (“old rag”), if related, would suggest that the d is original, whereas all of the following theories require that it is due to hypercorrection:
* From Old French faille (“headscarf, veil”), but this is itself of unknown origin and the sense is only a vague match.
* From Proto-West Germanic *fāgil(u), *fegil(u), a hypothetical tool noun of *fāgōn, *fegōn (“to clean, brush”), whence Dutch vagen, German fegen.
* From corruption of Proto-West Germanic *þwahilu, tool noun of *þwahan (“to wash”). Compare Dutch dweil, Middle Low German dweile (“cleaning cloth, floorcloth”). This would be the easiest explanation as Dutch dweil and feil are entirely synonymous. A development þw → f is also phonetically plausible, though there seem to be no analogous examples.