"M" Word Origins

morphology

Greek

From Greek morphe 'form' and -logia 'study of'.

morra

Italian

From Italian morra, a name of uncertain further origin used for this ancient finger-guessing game.

Morrell

Origin

Variant of Morel.

morris

Origin

Ultimately from "Moorish," as the dance was historically associated with exotic or foreign costume and disguise.

Morrison

Origin

From the given name Maurice or Morris, plus -son.

Morrissey

Irish

From Irish Muirgheasa.

morrow

Old English

From Middle English morwe, from Old English morgen ("morning"); a doublet of "morn" and related to Dutch and German morgen.

Morse

Latin

From Middle French mors, from Latin morsus ("bite" or "clasp"), the same root behind words like "morsel."

morsel

Latin

From Old French morsel, from Latin morsum ("a bite"), from mordere ("to bite") — the same root that gives us "morsel" and "remorse."

mort

Latin

From Old French mort, "death," ultimately from Latin mors/mortis — the same root behind "mortal" and "mortuary."

mortal

Latin

From Latin mortalis, from mors ("death").

mortality

Latin

From Old French mortalite, from Latin mortalitas, built from mors, "death" — the same root behind "mortal" and "murder".

mortally

Middle English

From Middle English mortally, built from "mortal" plus the adverb ending "-ly".

mortar

Latin

From Old French mortier, from Latin mortarium — the same word originally covered both the grinding bowl and, later, the building paste and the weapon, all linked by the idea of "pounding" or "mixing".

Morten

Norwegian

Borrowed from Danish and Norwegian Morten.

Mortensen

Norwegian

Borrowed from Danish and Norwegian Mortensen.

mortgage

Old French

From Old French mort gage, literally "dead pledge" — because the arrangement ended ("died") either when the debt was paid off or when the property was taken.

mortician

Latin

A modern American coinage combining Latin mort- ("death") with the professional suffix "-ician", modeled on words like "physician".

mortification

Origin

From Middle English mortificacioun, mortification, from Middle French mortification and its etymon Latin mortificātiō. By surface analysis, mortify + -ication.

mortify

Origin

From Anglo-Norman mortifier, Middle French mortifier, from Late Latin mortificō (“cause death”), from Latin mors (“death”) + -ficō (“-fy”).

Mortimer

Origin

A habitational surname from Mortemer in France, literally meaning "dead pond".

Morton

Old English

From Old English mor ("moor, marsh") and tun ("settlement").

mortuary

Latin

From Anglo-Norman mortuarie, a gift traditionally owed to a parish priest when a parishioner died, itself from Latin mortuarius, "of the dead" — from morior, "to die."

Morty

Origin

Diminutive + -y.

morula

Origin

From Latin morum (“mulberry”) + -ula.

MOS

Origin

Film industry jargon of disputed origin, long used to mark shots recorded without sound.

mosaic

Medieval Latin

From Italian mosaico, from Medieval Latin musaicum, ultimately tied to Greek Mouseion, "shrine of the Muses" — the same root that gives us "museum".

moscovium

Origin

From Moscow + -ium, named after Moscow Oblast. Promulgated as the proposed name for ununpentium in June 2016 by the IUPAC based on recommendations of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Vanderbilt University and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to honor the region where the element was discovered.

Moscow

Origin

Ultimately from Old East Slavic Москов- (Moskov-), referring originally to the Moskva River.

moseley

Origin

A variant of Mosley.

moser

Hebrew

Borrowed from Hebrew moser, "informer," via Yiddish — used in English mainly within Jewish communities and, more broadly, in crime slang.

Moses

Latin

From Hebrew Mōšê via Greek and Latin; the origin is debated, with some scholars linking it to an Egyptian word meaning "to give birth to."

mosey

Spanish

Origin unclear — first recorded in Southern US dialect. Possible sources include Spanish vamos ("let's go," compare "vamoose") or British dialect "mosey about," meaning to wander at an easy pace.

mosh

Origin

Possibly an alteration or deformation of mash.

Moshe

Hebrew

From Hebrew משה (moshé).

moskva

Origin

Transliteration of Russian Москва́ (Moskvá). Doublet of Moscow.

moslawi

Origin

From Arabic مُصْلَاوِيّ (muṣlāwiyy), from مَوْصِل (mawṣil, “Mosul”).

Mosley

Old English

From Old English mos ("peat bog") and leah ("woodland, clearing").

mosque

Italian

From Italian moschea, ultimately from Arabic masjid, "place of prostration" — a doublet of the word "masjid" itself.

mosquito

Latin

Borrowed from Spanish mosquito, "little fly", from mosca ("fly") plus a diminutive ending, ultimately from Latin musca.

moss

Old English

From Old English mos, "bog, marsh, moss", tracing back to a Proto-Germanic root shared with the Dutch and German words for moss — the plant and the "boggy ground" sense come from the same origin.

Mossad

Hebrew

From Hebrew מוֹסָד (mosád), literally "institute".

mossley

Origin

From Old English mos (“moss, bog”) + lēah (“meadow”).

most

Old English

From Old English mǣst, related to German meist and Dutch meest — all descending from a Proto-Germanic superlative form.

mostly

Origin

Formed from "most" plus the adverb-forming suffix "-ly".

Mosul

Arabic

Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish موصل (mosul), from Arabic الْمَوْصِل (al-mawṣil).

mot

French

From French mot, "word" — a doublet of "motto"; the vehicle-testing sense comes from the acronym MOT (Ministry of Transport), unrelated to the French word.

mote

Origin

From Middle English mot, from Old English mot (“grain of sand; mote; atom”), from Proto-West Germanic *mot (“grain of dirt or sand, speck”). Perhaps linked to English mud. Compare West Frisian mot (“peat dust”), Dutch mot (“dust from turf; sawdust; grit”), Low German mut (“peat dust, grit”), Norwegian mutt (“speck; mote; splinter; chip”), Italian mota (“mud”), Spanish mota (“speck”).