'watch' originates from Old English, specifically the word 'wæcce', where 'wæcce' meant 'a watching or a wakefulness'.

'wæcce' transformed into the Middle English word 'wacche', and eventually became the modern English word 'watch'.

Initially, it meant 'a state of being awake', but over time it evolved into its current meaning of 'a timepiece or act of observing'.