"A" Word Origins

accompaniment

French · 1744

From French accompagnement, built from "accompany" plus the suffix "-ment." First recorded in English in 1744.

accompany

Latin

From Old French acompagner, "to associate with," built from compaing, "companion" — ultimately from Latin words meaning "one who shares bread" (com- "together" + panis "bread").

accomplice

Latin

From Old French complice, "confederate," from Latin complicare, "to fold together." The initial "a" got stuck onto the word over time, likely by confusion with "accomplish."

accomplish

Vulgar Latin

From Old French acomplir, from Vulgar Latin roots meaning "to fill up completely" — related to the English word "complete."

accomplished

Origin

* First attested in the late 15th century, from accomplish + -ed.

accomplishment

French

* First attested in the early 15th century. * (completes, perfects, equips): First attested around 1600. * accomplish + -ment * Borrowed from French accomplissement, from accomplir

accord

Latin

From Old French acorder, ultimately from Latin roots meaning "to bring hearts together" (cor, "heart").

accordance

Middle English

* (compliance): First attested around 1300. * (agreement): First attested in the early 14th century. * accord + -ance * From Middle English accordaunce, from Old French acordance (“agreeing, reconciliation, harmony”).

according

Origin

From accord + -ing.

accordingly

Middle English

From Middle English acordingli, equivalent to according + -ly.

accordion

French · 1830

Borrowed in the 1830s from German Akkordeon, from Akkord ("harmony, chord"), itself from French accord — the same root as the word "accord."

accost

Origin

From Middle French accoster, acoster, from Old French acoster (“to stand beside”) (whence Medieval Latin accostare), from Old French a- + coste (“side, flank”).

accouchement

Origin

Borrowed from French accouchement, from French accoucher (“to be delivered of a child, to aid in delivery”), from Old French acouchier (“to lay down, put to bed, go to bed”), from Latin ad- + collocare (“to lay, put, place”). See collate.

accoucheur

Origin

Attested since 1727. Borrowed from French accoucheur, from accoucher (“to go to childbed, be delivered”), from Old French culcher (“to lie”), from Latin collocō (“to place, put, set in order, assign”), from con- + locō (“to put, place, set”). See accouchement.

account

Latin

From Old French aconter, "to reckon, count," ultimately from Latin computare — the same root as "compute" and "count."

accountable

Origin

From account + -able. First attested around 1400.

accountancy

Origin

From account + -ancy.

accountant

Middle English

From Middle English, from Middle French acuntant. Equivalent to account + -ant. First attested in the mid 15th century.

accounting

Origin

* First attested in the late 14th century. * account + -ing

accouter

Origin

From Middle French accoutrer, from Old French acoustrer, from Vulgar Latin acconsūtūrāre (“to equip with clothes”), from Latin ad (“to”) + consūtūra (“sewing, clothes”), from Latin cōnsuō (“to sew together”), from Latin con- (“together”) + suō (“to sew”), first attested in the 1590s.

accredit

Origin

* First attested in the 1610s. * From French accréditer, from à (“to”) + to credit, from crédit (“credit”). * See credit.

accreditation

Latin

From "accredit," from French "accréditer," to give credit or authority to, from Latin "credere" (to believe or trust).

accredited

Origin

* accredit + -ed * From the French accréditer. * See credit.

accrual

Latin

From accrue, from Old French acreue 'increase', from Latin accrescere 'to grow towards', from ad- + crescere 'to grow'.

accrue

Origin

First attested in mid 15th century. From Middle English acrewen, borrowed from Old French acreüe, past participle of accreistre (“to increase”), from Latin accrēsco (“increase”), from ad (“in addition”) + crēscō (“to grow”). Compare accrete.

acculturation

Origin

First attested in 1880; ad- (“toward”) + culture + -ation (“a process”); equivalent to acculturate + -ion

accumulate

Latin

From Latin accumulare, "to heap up," from ad- ("to") plus cumulus ("a heap") — the same root behind "cumulus" clouds.

accuracy

Origin

* First attested in the 1660s. * accurate + -cy

accurate

Latin

From Latin accuratus, "prepared with care," from ad- plus curare, "to take care of" — related to the English word "cure."

accursed

Middle English

From Middle English acursed, from acursen (“to curse”), from Old English ācursian, from ā- + cursian, from curs (“curse”). First attested in the 13th century.

accusation

Middle English

First attested in the late 14th century. Inherited from Middle English accusacion, borrowed from Old French acusacion (French: accusation), from Latin accūsātiō (“accusation, indictment”), from accūsō (“blame, accuse”). Doublet of accusatio. More at accuse. Equivalent to accuse + -ation.

accuse

Latin

From Old French acuser, from Latin accusare, "to call to account," from ad- plus causa, "cause, lawsuit."

accused

Origin

* (noun): First attested in the 1590's. * From accuse (“blame”) + -ed

accustom

Origin

The verb is from Middle English accustomen, from Old French acoustumer, acustumer (Modern French accoutumer) corresponding to a (“to, toward”) + custom. More at custom, costume. The noun is from Middle English acustom.

accustomed

Origin

From accustom + -ed.

ace

Latin

From Old French as, from Latin as, assis, meaning "a unit" or "a small copper coin" — the idea of being the "one" or top unit carried over into cards and skill.

acerb

Origin

From Latin acerbus, from Latin ācer (“sharp”): compare French acerbe. See acrid.

acerbicness

Origin

From acerbic + -ness.

acerbity

Origin

Borrowed from French acerbité, from Latin acerbitās (“acerbity; harshness”), from acerbus (“bitter”). See acerb.

acetaminophen

Origin

A shortening of the chemical name para-acetylaminophenol. By surface analysis, acet- + amino- + -phen.

acetone

Origin

From "acet-" (linked to vinegar) plus the chemical ending "-one," the same ending found in words like "ketone."

acetose

Origin

See acetous.

acetous

Origin

From Latin acētum (“vinegar”) + -ous, the former from aceō (“to be sour”).

acetylene

French

Coined in French from "acetyl" plus the chemical ending "-ene," first used by the chemist Marcellin Berthelot.

ach

Latin

From Middle English ache, borrowed from Old French ache, ultimately from Latin apium, "parsley."

ache

Old English · 1700

From Old English acan (the verb) and æce (the noun), going back to a very old Germanic root meaning "to hurt." The two spellings merged over time, partly because an 18th-century dictionary writer mistakenly linked the word to a similar-sounding Greek word for pain.

achesome

Origin

From ache + -some.

achieve

Latin

From Old French achever, "to finish" or "bring to a head," ultimately built from Latin caput ("head") — the sense being to bring something to its final point.