"S" Word Origins

Sean

Latin

Anglicised form of Irish Seán, ultimately from Latin Johannes ("John"), the same root shared by Ian, Ivan, Shane, and Giovanni.

seance

French

From French séance, 'a sitting or session', from seoir 'to sit', which goes back to Latin sedere 'to sit'.

seaplane

Origin

From sea + plane; the term is sometimes credited to Winston Churchill.

seaport

Origin

From sea + port.

sear

Old English

From Old English sēar ("dry, withered"), from a Proto-Germanic root meaning "dry, parched."

search

Late Latin

From Anglo-Norman sercher, from Late Latin circare ("to go around, search for"), from circus ("circle").

searcher

Middle English

From Middle English serchour, sercher, from Old French cercheor; equivalent to search + -er.

searchlight

Origin

From search + light.

seashell

Old English

Simply "sea" plus "shell" — the shell part traces back through Old English scell to a very old root meaning "to split" or "peel," since shells split away from the creature inside.

seashore

Origin

Straightforward combination of "sea" and "shore."

seasick

Middle English

From Middle English "see seke" — literally "sea-sick," combining sea and sick.

seasickness

Origin

From "seasick" plus the noun-forming suffix "-ness."

seaside

Middle English

From Middle English "see-syde," literally "sea side."

season

Latin

From Old French "seson" ("time of sowing"), from Latin "satio" ("act of sowing"). The cooking sense developed later, from the idea of a dish being brought to its proper, ripened state.

seasonal

Origin

From "season" plus the adjective suffix "-al."

seasoner

Origin

From season + -er.

seasoning

Origin

From "season" (the verb, meaning to flavour food) plus "-ing."

seaspace

Origin

From sea + space.

seat

Old English

From Old English "sǣte" and Old Norse "sæti," both going back to a very old root meaning "to sit."

seater

Origin

From seat + -er (measurement suffix) or -er (agent noun suffix).

Seattle

Origin

Named after Chief Seattle, from the Lushootseed name siʔaɬ.

Seaver

Old English

From the medieval female name Sefare, from Old English sǣ ("sea") and faru ("journey").

seawall

Origin

From Middle English se-walle, from Old English sǣweall (“seawall”), equivalent to sea + wall.

seaward

Origin

From Middle English seaward, seward (attested only as an adjective), equivalent to sea + -ward.

seawater

Old English

From Old English "sǣwæter," a straightforward combination of sea and water.

seaway

Origin

From Middle English seewey, from Old English sǣweġ (“a seaway, a path through the sea”), equivalent to sea + way. Compare Saterland Frisian Seegong (“seaway, swell”), German Seegang (“seaway, swell”).

seaweed

Origin

From "sea" plus "weed."

seawoman

Origin

From sea + -woman.

seaworthy

Origin

From "sea" plus "-worthy," meaning fit or suitable for something.

Seb

Origin

A clipping of Sebastian.

Sebastian

Latin

From Latin Sebastiānus, the name of an early Christian saint, ultimately from Greek Sebastós, "venerable, august."

secant

Origin

From Latin secāns, present participle of secō (“to cut”).

secede

Latin

From Latin secedere 'to withdraw, go apart', from se- 'apart' and cedere 'to go'.

secernment

Origin

From secern + -ment.

secessionism

Origin

From secession + -ism.

seclude

Origin

From Latin secludo.

secluded

Latin

From "seclude," ultimately from Latin "secludere" ("to shut away").

seclusion

Latin

From Latin "seclusio," from "secludere" ("to shut off, separate").

seclusionist

Origin

From seclusion + -ist.

seclusive

Origin

Pseudo-Latinism, derived from *sēclūsīvus, a combination of sēclūdō (“to seclude”) + -īvus (“-ive”), whence the native Latin sēclūsus. Equivalent to seclude + -ive.

second

Latin

From Old French "second," from Latin "secundus" ("following, next"), related to "sequor" ("to follow").

secondary

Latin

From Latin "secundarius" ("of the second class"), from "secundus" ("second").

secondhand

Origin

From "second" plus "hand" — the idea of passing through a second owner's hands.

secondly

Origin

From "second" plus the adverb suffix "-ly."

secondment

English

From the verb second, 'to transfer someone temporarily to other duties', which came into military and civil service use from French en second 'in a secondary capacity'.

secrecy

Latin

An alteration of the older Middle English word "secretee," from Old French "secré," ultimately from Latin "secretus."

secret

Latin

From Latin "sēcrētum" ("something hidden"), the past participle of "secernere" ("to separate, set apart").

secretarial

Origin

From "secretary" plus the adjective suffix "-al."