'limpet' originates from Middle English, specifically the word 'limpet', of uncertain origin (possibly deriving from an earlier Old English form); the precise original root is unclear.

'limpet' appeared in Middle English (medieval attestations as 'limpet') and was carried into Modern English with little change in form, remaining 'limpet'.

Initially it referred to the marine mollusc that clings to rocks; over time the word was extended figuratively to describe a clingy person and later was used in the compound 'limpet mine' for an explosive device attached to ship hulls.