An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Nuß

by Friedrich Kluge

Nuß (1.), f., ‘nut,’ from the equiv. MidHG. and OHG. nuȥ, f., neither cognate with nor borrowed from Lat. nux (nucem). It is rather a genuine Teut. world, orig. with initial h; comp. OIc. hnot, f., AS. hnutu, f., E. nut, Du. noot (Goth. *hnuts, f., is wanting). The genuine Teut. cognates point to a pre-Teut. knud-, which appears with the same sense in OIr. cnú.

Nuß (2.), f., ‘blow, push,’ ModHG. simply; only apparently identical with the preceding word (comp. Dachtel); historically, however, it is probably allied to Goth. hnutô, ‘prick.’