Waschbär

What Germans call a Waschbär (literally “wash bear”) is known in the English-speaking world as a racoon. This is just one of many examples of quirky German words with a mysterious etymology (i.e. where is it coming from?).  After all, the only thing a racoon has in common with a real bear is that both animals are furry and four-legged. One possible explanation for this word is that racoons like to touch their food all over to get a good idea what it is, before eating it. Since they often do this in the water, it was mistakenly assumed that they are “washing” their food, when in reality they are just giving it a good feel. Although we now know that racoons do not actually wash their food, the name has stuck to this day.