The origins of the word are unknown. The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) says that the word puss is common to several Germanic languages, usually as a call name for the cat — not a synonym for cat, as it is in English. The Oxford English Dictionary and Webster's Third International Dictionary point out similarities with words including: Old Norse, pūss (pocket) Old Saxon pūse (vulva) Old English pusa (bag) The medieval French word pucelle referred to a young adolescent girl or a virgin, although this comes from a slang term for virginity puce (= flea) rather than referring to cats (but cf. French chatte (female cat), a current vulgarism for the female genitalia). In the 17th century, the term was also used to refer to women in general. Philip Stubbs , an English pamphleteer, wrote in his 1583 book "The Anatomie of Abuses" that "the word pussie is now used of a woman". It has been informally suggested in folk etymology that it is a shortened form of the word "pusillanimous ", which comes from Latin words meaning "tiny spirit" and is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as "showing a lack of courage or determination" or cowardly. Though this meaning would seem to be consistent with the intention of the word "pussy" when used as an insult toward a man, it is a false cognate unrelated to the Germanic derivations of puss and pussy.