sport

[robjon]

why is an ice rink called a rink not a ring

[YvonneM]

The roots of "rink" are a bit tangled, but its closest relative is probably the Middle English "renc," meaning "racecourse," derived from the Old French "renc," meaning "line, row or rank." (The related Old French word "ranc" gave us our modern English "rank"). It is also probable that both "rink" and "rank" go back to the Germanic root that produced the English word "ring" meaning "circle."


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