"R" Word Origins

rosen

Middle English

From Middle English rosen (“made of roses; rosy”), from Old English rōsen (“of roses; rosy”), equivalent to rose + -en.

Rosenberg

German

Borrowed from German Rosenberg, literally "rose mountain".

Rosenthal

German

Borrowed from German Rosenthal, literally "rose valley".

rosetta

Arabic

Likely borrowed from Arabic رَشِيد (rašīd) eventually.

rosette

French

Borrowed from French rosette, literally a "little rose," from rose plus the diminutive suffix -ette.

rosewood

Origin

A compound of rose and wood, named for the rose-like scent of the freshly cut timber.

Roshan

Persian

From Persian روشن (rowšan) and Sanskrit, meaning "light, radiance, bright".

Rosie

Origin

Diminutive of Rose + -ie.

rosin

Origin

From Old French raisine, rousine, variants of résine. Doublet of resin.

Rosina

Italian · 1816

An Italian pet form of Rosa, popularized by the character in Rossini's 1816 opera The Barber of Seville.

Roslyn

Origin

A variant of Rosaline inspired by the Scottish place name Roslin or Rosslyn.

Ross

Origin

* As a Scottish surname, from several places such as Roose in Cumbria or Roos in Yorkshire, both from Scottish Gaelic ros (“promontory”) or a Brythonic parallel of its source such as Welsh rhos (“moor, heath”). There were also several Norman families in Scotland who took their name from Rots in Calvados. Compare Rose, Rhodes. * As an English surname, from Wrose in Shipley, with loss of initial w. * As an English and German surname, from derivatives of the old Germanic root common in names *hrōþi (“fame”). Compare Rossell. * As a Cornish surname, from several places in Cornwall deriving from ros (“heathland”), related to the above Celtic word meaning "heath" or "promontory." See Rouse. * As a Jewish and German occupational surname for a breeder of horses, from the regional/poetic noun Ross (“horse”). Doublet of horse. * Also as a Jewish surname, Americanized from Rose.

Rossi

Italian

Borrowed from Italian Rossi.

rossiter

Origin

Variant of Rochester.

Rosso

Origin

* As an Italian surname, from the adjective rosso (“red”). This is also found in Croatia as Roso. * As a Greek surname Ρόσσος (Róssos), from the Italian surname above, or sometimes from Ρώσος (Rósos, “Russian”).

Rossum

Origin · 1920

Popularized by Karel Čapek's 1920 play "R.U.R." (Rossum's Universal Robots).

roster

Dutch

From Dutch rooster, originally meaning "gridiron" or "table/list," from roosten, "to roast" — the ruled lines of a schedule apparently reminded people of the bars of a grill.

Rostov

Russian

Transliteration of Russian Росто́в (Rostóv). The surname comes from Russian рост (rost, “growth”). The etymology of the city's name is unclear.

rostrum

Origin

Learned borrowing from Latin rōstrum (“beak, snout”), from rōd(ō) (“gnaw”) + -trum, from Proto-Indo-European *Hreh₃d- + *-trom. The pulpit sense is a back-formation from the name of the Roman Rōstra, the platforms in the Forum where politicians made speeches. The Rōstra were decorated with (and named for) the beaks (prows) of ships from naval victories.

Roswell

Middle English

Metathesized from Middle English Roweshill, from a contraction of either the Old English personal name Hrōþwulf or its Norman cognate Rolf, Rouf, Rou (in the genitive case, adding -es) + Old English hyll (“hill”).

rosy

Middle English

From Middle English rosy, built from rose plus the adjective-forming suffix -y.

rot

Old English

From Old English rotian, "to rot or become corrupted," going back to a Proto-Germanic root meaning the same.

rota

Latin

Borrowed from Latin rota, "wheel" — the same root that gives us rotor and rotate.

rotary

Medieval Latin

From Medieval Latin rotarius, ultimately from Latin rota, "wheel."

rotate

Latin

From Latin rotatus, past participle of rotare, "to revolve," from rota, "wheel."

rotation

Latin

From Latin rotatio, built on rotare, "to revolve."

rotational

Origin

From rotation + -al.

rotator

Origin

Built from rotate plus the agent suffix -or.

ROTC

English

An initialism of Reserve Officers' Training Corps.

rote

Middle English

From Middle English rote, "custom, habit," seen in the old phrase "bi rote" (by heart) — its deeper origin is uncertain, and despite the tempting resemblance, dictionaries don't actually connect it to "rotary" or "wheel."

Roth

Origin

The surname reflects several origins; see Roth.

Rothschild

German

From the German-Jewish banking family surname Rothschild, literally "red shield," reinterpreted in English as if it meant "Roth's child."

Rothstein

German

Borrowed from German Rothstein.

roti

Sanskrit

From Hindi/Urdu roti, ultimately from Sanskrit rotika, "bread."

rotisserie

French

From French rôtisserie, from rôtir, "to roast."

rotor

Origin

A shortened form of "rotator," first used in mathematics before being adopted for spinning machine parts.

rotorcraft

Origin

From rotor + craft.

rotten

Old English

From Old Norse rotinn, "decayed," related to Old English rotian — the same root behind the verb "rot."

rottenstone

Origin

From rotten + stone.

rotter

Origin

Formed from rot plus the agent suffix -er.

Rotterdam

Origin

From "Rotte," the name of a river, plus "dam."

rotting

Old English

From the verb "rot" plus the suffix "-ing," tracing back to Old English rotian, "to decay."

rottingness

Origin

From Middle English rotyngnesse; equivalent to rotting + -ness.

Rottweiler

German

Named after the German town of Rottweil, where the breed was developed for herding and guarding cattle.

rotund

Origin

Learned borrowing from Latin rotundus (“round”), from Latin rota (“wheel”), from Proto-Indo-European *Hreth₂- (“to run, to roll”). Doublet of round.

roturier

Origin

Borrowed from Middle French roturier.

Rouen

Latin

Named after Rouen, the French city where the breed was developed, itself from Latin Rotomagus.

rouge

Latin

From French rouge, "red," ultimately from Latin rubeus.