English dictionary, thesaurus, translations & etymology

"F" Word Origins

Where do words come from? Trace the origin and history of any English word, from its Latin, Greek or Old English roots through to its modern meaning. Every etymology is sourced.

“F” Word Origins

Variant of Flanagan.

From Old French flanc, of Germanic origin, related to a root meaning "to bend" — the same root behind lank.

From flank + -er. The verb is from the noun (sense 3).

From Anglo-Norman flanelle, ultimately traced back to a Celtic word for coarse wool.

Reduced Anglicized form of Irish Ó Flannabhra (“descendant of Flannabhra”), a personal name derived from flann (“blood red”) + abhra (“eyebrow”). The bridge convention was invented by American player William (Bill) L. Flannery.

Variant of Flanagan.

From Middle English flappe, "a slap or blow," related to the idea of something loose striking against something else.

From flap (“to toss sharply”) + jack (“generic object”). So called from the process of baking it by flipping and catching it in the griddle when done on one side.

Origin uncertain, first recorded in the mid-1500s; possibly related to Latin flagrare, "to burn."

From Middle English flasshen, likely imitating the sound and suddenness of a splash or burst of light.

From flash + back.

Named after Mabel Flasher.

From flash + -ing; the roofing sense comes from the shiny, light-reflecting metal traditionally used.

From flash + light.

From flash + -man.

From Old English flaxe and Medieval Latin flasco, both going back to a Germanic word for a wicker-covered bottle. Related to "fiasco" and "flagon."

From flask + -ful.

From Old Norse flatr ("flat"), borrowed into Middle English. The "apartment" sense comes from an older meaning of flat as "a level floor or storey."

A compound of "flat" and "bed" (the load-bearing surface of a vehicle).

From flat + boat.

From Dutch "Vlacke Bos," meaning "wooded plain."

From flat + car.

From "flat" + "foot," describing a foot without the usual arch.

From flat + land.

From "flat" + "line" — describing the straight, unmoving trace an ECG or EEG produces when there's no more activity to record.

From "flat" + the adverb-forming suffix "-ly."

From "flat" + "mate."

From Middle English flatnesse, equivalent to flat + -ness.

From "flat" + the verb-forming suffix "-en."

From Middle English flateren, likely blending an Old English word for fluttering or fawning with an Old French word meaning to stroke with the flat of the hand.

From "flatter" + the agent suffix "-er."

From "flatter" + "-ing."

From Old French flaterie, from the verb flater ("to flatter").

From French flatulence, ultimately from Latin flare ("to blow").

From Middle French flatulent.

Learned borrowing from Latin flātus (“blowing, wind, fart”). First attested in the 1660s–1670s.

Origin uncertain, likely of North Germanic origin, possibly related to a Norwegian word meaning "to show off."

From Latin "flavus," meaning "golden" or "yellow."

From Latin "flavus," meaning "golden" or "yellow."

From Old French flaour ("smell, odour"), from Latin flare ("to blow"). It originally referred mainly to smell before shifting to mean taste.

From flavor + -er.

From flavor + -some.

From flavour + -er.

From Middle English flawe, probably from Old Norse flaga ("a flake" or "slab of stone").

From "flaw" + "-ed."

From "flaw" + "-less."

From "flawless" + "-ly."

From Middle English flaun, flaon, flawn, from Old French flaon, from Late Latin fladonem, accusative of flado, from Frankish *flaþō. Doublet of flan, flathe, and flathon.