"R" Word Origins

rune

Old Norse

From Old Norse rún, from Proto-Germanic *rūnō ("letter, secret, mystery"); related to German Rune.

rung

Old English

From Old English hrung, from Proto-Germanic *hrungō — related to German Runge ("stake, pole").

runish

Origin

From Middle English runish, runisch, from Old English *rūnisc, *rȳnisc, rēnisc (“mysterious, mystic”), equivalent to rune + -ish.

Runkle

Middle English

From Middle English runkel, related to Old Norse hrukka ("wrinkle") — a rare word, mostly surviving in Scots dialect.

runlet

Origin

From Middle English roundelet, from Old French rondelet (“roundlet”). More at roundlet.

runnel

Origin

From Middle English runel, rennel, rinel, from Old English rynel (“that which runs; runner; stream”), from Proto-Germanic *runilaz, equivalent to run + -el. Cognate with Scots rinel, rinnal (“stream; runnel”), Swedish rännel (“runner; runnel”).

runner

Middle English

From Middle English rennere, formed from run + -er; cognate with Old Norse rennari ("runner, messenger").

running

Origin

Formed from run + -ing.

runny

Origin

From run + -y.

runoff

Origin

Formed from the verb phrase "run off".

runs

Origin

Likely alludes to how someone with this condition has to run to the bathroom frequently.

runt

Dutch

Origin uncertain — the OED calls it "of obscure origin," possibly linked to a Middle Dutch word for "ox."

runtime

English

A compound of run and time, originally written as two words in computing and later closed up.

runway

Origin

Formed from run + way.

rupa

Sanskrit

From Sanskrit रूप (rūpá), meaning "form, shape, figure."

rupee

Sanskrit · 1540

Coined under Sher Shah Suri in the 1540s from Sanskrit रूप्य (rūpya), meaning "wrought silver" or "stamped coin."

Rupert

German · 1600

A German name brought to England by Prince Rupert of the Rhine in the 17th century; a doublet of "Robert."

rupture

Latin

From Latin ruptūra ("a breaking"), from rumpere ("to break, burst") — a doublet of "roture."

rural

Latin

From Old French rural, from Latin rūrālis, from rūs ("countryside").

ruralist

Origin

From rural + -ist.

Rus

Old Norse

From Old East Slavic Русь (Rusĭ), likely from Old Norse via Proto-Finnic, referring to Scandinavian traders who settled near Kiev.

ruse

Old French

From Old French ruse ("trick, cunning"), originally describing the evasive doubling-back of a hunted animal.

rush

Old English

Likely from Middle English ruschen ("to make a rushing noise"), from Old English hrysċan, related to Proto-Germanic roots meaning "fast, quick."

Rushworth

Origin

Variant of Rishworth.

rusk

Spanish

Borrowed from Spanish or Portuguese rosca, meaning "a twist or roll of bread."

Russ

Origin

Diminutive of Russell.

Russel

Latin

From Old French roussel, from Latin russus ("red"), via a diminutive form.

russet

Origin

From Middle English russet, from Anglo-Norman russet, rossat, roset, and Middle French rosset, rousset (“reddish, reddish-brown; a rough wool cloth”), from Middle French rous, rus (“to rouse”) + -et (diminutive suffix); compare Late Latin rossetum, russetum, russeta (“rough wool cloth”), Latin russus (“red”) (from Proto-Indo-European *h₁rewdʰ- (“red”)), Occitan rosseta (“rough wool cloth”).

Russia

Medieval Latin

From Medieval Latin Russia, from Old East Slavic Русь (Rusĭ), tracing back to Old Norse roots connected with "rowing."

Russian

Medieval Latin · 1500

From Medieval Latin Russiānus, from Russia; in English use as both noun and adjective since the 16th century.

Russo

Origin

From the Sicilian surname Russu, from russu (“redhead”).

rust

Old English

From Old English rust, going back to a very old Germanic root meaning "red" — the same root that gives us the word "red" itself.

rustic

Latin

From Latin rusticus, "of the countryside," from rus, "country" or "farmland."

rustle

Middle English

From Middle English rustelen, likely echoing the sound itself — a word built to imitate the noise it describes.

rustling

Middle English

From Middle English *rustlynge, rustland, from Old English hrīstlende, *hrȳstlende, present participle of Old English *hrȳstlan (“to rustle”), equivalent to rustle + -ing.

rusty

Old English

From Old English rustig, "rusty," built from rust plus the adjective-forming suffix -y.

rut

Old French

From Old French rut, "roar" or "bellowing," originally describing the noise male deer make during mating season.

rutabaga

Swedish · 1700

Borrowed in the late 1700s from a Swedish dialect word combining rot ("root") and bagge ("lump").

ruth

Middle English

From Middle English reuthe, related to the verb "rue" (to regret) — the noun form survives today mainly in its negative, "ruthless."

ruthenian

Origin

From Ruthenia + -an.

rutherford

Origin

Named after the physicist Ernest Rutherford, a pioneer of nuclear physics.

Ruthie

Origin

A pet form of Ruth, made by adding the affectionate ending "-ie."

ruthless

Middle English

From Middle English reuþeles, literally "without ruth" — ruth being an old word for pity, plus the suffix -less.

ruthlessly

Origin

From ruthless plus the adverb-forming suffix -ly.

ruthlessness

Origin

From ruthless plus the noun-forming suffix -ness.

rutile

Origin

From Latin rutilus (“red”) because of its common color, named in 1803.

Rutland

Old English

The origin is debated, but it may combine an Old English word for cattle with "land," or come from a personal name plus "land."

rutter

Origin

From Middle Dutch ruter, rutter, variants of ruiter, from Middle French routier (“mercenary soldier”), corresponding to route + ier; see rout.