You may have used the word to refer to some doctors as quacks.
But have you have wondered why people in the business of saving lives are associated with that name. Well, it's not because they look like ducks.
According to the Metro, quacksalver is a Dutch word that was used to describe people who sold medicines in the 17th century.
It came to mean crook when many peddlers started selling fake potions as a cure.
These quacks became especially common in the 1800s during cholera epidemics in Europe. The rascals prayed on the sick desperate to try any kind of remedy to be cured.
In 1858, UK's Medical Register was created which meant only registered doctors could legally sell medicines.
While the quacks vanished, the name did not and is still popularly associated with medical professionals.
