Having come across the French slang word "mec" and wondering whether it was short for something, I was pondering this morning about some of its English equivalents.
"Fellow" comes from a medieval English word meaning a man who is one's social equal. "Chap" is shortened from an old English word for buyer or seller. My dictionaries don't know the origins of the more colloquial "guy" or "dude." The Britishism "bloke" isn't even in my dictionary.
If I had to guess, I would imagine that "guy" derives from the male name, a diminutive variant of the French "Guillaume" (William) or "Guibert" (Gilbert). As for "dude"? Man, that's anybody's guess.
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