"Cet affreux cauchemar est termine..."

Cauchemar is the French word for nightmare. It is derived from cauquemaire used in the 15th century. It is composed of the words caucher and mare. Caucher is derived from cauchier which means "to press". Cauchier is probably a mix of the ancient French word chauchier ("to press" or "to tread upon") and the latin word calcare ("to sprain one's ankel" or "to heel") Mare comes from the Picard word mare, borrowed from the Dutch word mare (which means "ghost").