"O" Word Origins

orator

Latin

From Latin orator, "speaker," from orare, "to speak, plead."

oratory

Late Latin

From Late Latin oratorium, related to orare, "to speak, pray."

orb

Latin

From Old French orbe, from Latin orbis, "circle, ring."

orbicular

Origin

From the Late Latin orbiculāris, from Latin orbiculus, diminutive of orbis (“orb”).

Orbison

Origin

A variant of Albinson.

orbit

Latin

From Latin orbita, "track, course," related to orbis, "circle."

orbital

Medieval Latin

From Medieval Latin orbitalis, based on orbita, "track, orbit."

orbiter

Origin

Formed from orbit plus the agent suffix -er.

orc

Latin

The sea-creature sense traces back through French and Italian to Latin orca ("a kind of whale") — the same root that gives us "orca." The fantasy-monster sense was popularized separately by J.R.R. Tolkien.

orca

Latin

From Latin orca, meaning both "cask" and "a kind of whale" — the exact link between those two senses is unclear.

orchard

Old English

From Old English orċeard, originally a blend of a word related to "wort" (plant) and "yard" (enclosure) — so literally something like "plant-yard."

orchestra

Ancient Greek

From Ancient Greek orkhḗstra, the semicircular space in front of a Greek theatre stage where the chorus danced — from orkhéomai, "to dance."

orchestral

Origin

Built from "orchestra" plus the adjective-forming suffix "-al."

orchestrate

French

From "orchestra" plus the verb-forming suffix "-ate," on the model of French orchestrer.

orchestration

French

From French orchestration, built from "orchestrate" plus "-ion."

orchid

New Latin

From New Latin Orchidaceae, based on Latin orchis, from Greek órkhis, meaning both "orchid" and "testicle" — a reference to the shape of some orchid root tubers.

orchidea

Origin

From Italian Orchidea, from orchidea (“orchid”).

orcus

Origin

From Latin Orcus. Doublet of ogre and orc.

ord

Old English

From Old English ord, meaning "point, spear-tip, or beginning" — related to the word "odd."

ordain

Origin

From Middle English ordeynen, from Old French ordiner, from Latin ordinare (“to order”), from ordo (“order”). Doublet of ordinate.

ordeal

Old English

From Old English ordēl, literally "a judgement dealt out" — related to the modern word "deal."

order

Latin

From Old French ordre, from Latin ōrdō, "a row" — originally referring to the row of threads on a loom.

ordinal

Origin

Borrowed from Latin ōrdinālis, adjective formed from noun ōrdō (“order”), + adjective suffix -ālis.

ordinance

Origin

From Middle English ordinaunce (ca. 1300), from Old French ordenance (“decree, command”) (modern French ordonnance), from Medieval Latin ordinantia, from ordinans, the present participle of ordino (“put in order”) (whence ordain). Doublet of ordonnance.

ordinary

Latin

From Latin ōrdinārius, "regular, orderly," from ōrdō, "order."

ordnance

Origin

A shortened form of "ordinance," which originally meant military equipment or provisions before narrowing to mean weapons and artillery specifically.

ordo

Origin

Borrowed from Latin ōrdō. Doublet of order.

ordure

Origin

From Middle English ordure, ordure, borrowed from Middle French ordure and Anglo-Norman ordure, ordeur(e), ordor(e), ordour from Old French ordure (“dirt, filth, refuse; dung, excrement; moral filth”) (modern French ordure), from ord (“filthy”) + -ure (suffix forming nouns describing the results of actions). Ord is derived from Latin horridus (“dreadful, frightful, horrid”), from horreō (“to stand erect, stand on end; to shiver, tremble; to be afraid of, dread; to be frightful”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰers- (“stiff; surprised”)) + -idus (suffix meaning ‘tending to’).

ore

Old English

From Old English ōra ("unwrought metal") blended with ār ("brass, copper, bronze").

oregano

Spanish · 1700

Borrowed in the 18th century from Spanish orégano, ultimately from Greek oríganon.

Oren

Hebrew

Borrowed from Hebrew אורן ("pine tree").

Oreo

French · 1912

A trademarked brand name first registered by the National Biscuit Company in 1912; its exact origin is disputed, with theories ranging from the French word for "gold" (or) to a simple invented name. The slur sense plays on the cookie's black-outside, white-inside appearance.

Orestes

Ancient Greek

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ὀρέστης (Oréstēs).

organ

Latin

From Latin organum, from Greek órganon, meaning "a tool" or "instrument" — the same root gives us "organic" and "organize."

organic

Latin

From Latin organicus, ultimately from Greek órganon, "instrument" or "organ."

organicity

Origin

From organic + -ity.

organisation

Middle French

From Middle French organisation, equivalent to organise + -ation.

organise

Middle French

From Middle French organiser. By surface analysis, organ + -ise.

organism

Greek

From "organ" plus "-ism," ultimately from Greek órganon, "instrument."

organist

Latin

From French organiste, ultimately from Latin organum.

organization

Medieval Latin

Borrowed from Middle French organisation, from Medieval Latin organizātiō.

organizational

Origin

From organization + -al.

organize

Medieval Latin

From Old French organiser, from Medieval Latin organizāre, ultimately from Greek órganon.

organized

German

From organ (“musical instrument”) + -ize, calque of German organisierte/organisirte.

orgasm

French

From French orgasme, ultimately from Greek orgasmós, "excitement," related to orgáō, "to swell with excitement."

orgasmic

Origin

Formed from "orgasm" plus "-ic." The more historically regular form would be "orgastic," following the pattern of "enthusiasm/enthusiastic," but "orgasmic" is now the common form.

orgo

Origin

From org(anic) + -o.

orgy

Latin

From French orgies, from Latin orgia, from Greek órgia, "secret rites" — originally referring to ritual pagan ceremonies before it took on its modern, racier sense.