ruddock
noun/ˈɹʌdək/
Etymology From Middle English ruddocke, ruddok, roddok, from Old English rudduc, ruduc (“robin, ruddock”, literally “little red one, red-ling”), equivalent to rud (“redness”) + -ock (diminutive suffix). The Welsh rhuddog, and Cornish rudhek (“the redbreast”) are probably from the English, although a derivation from a British Celtic *roudākos (< *roudos "red") for all three cannot be ruled out. More at rud.
1
Archaic The European robin.
- The Ouzell shrills; the Ruddock warbles soft.1595, Edmund Spenser, Epithalamion:
- The sweet And shrilly ruddock, with its bleeding breast1827, Thomas Hood, The Plea of the Midsummer Fairies:
2
Obsolete A piece of gold money (probably because the gold of coins was often reddened by copper alloy).
- Great pieces of gold […] red ruddocks.1611, John Florio, Queen Anna's New World of Words, or Dictionarie of the Italian and English tongues:
3
Obsolete A variety of red apple, used for cidermaking.