"S" Word Origins

shitstorm

Origin

A compound of shit and storm.

shitter

Origin

Formed from shit plus the agent suffix -er.

shitting

Origin

The -ing form of shit.

shitty

Origin

From shit plus the adjective suffix -y.

shiv

Origin · 1915

First recorded around 1915, from Romani chive/chiv, meaning "knife."

shiva

Sanskrit

The mourning-period sense comes from Hebrew shiv'a, meaning "seven," referring to its seven-day length. The deity name is unrelated, from Sanskrit.

Shivaji

Sanskrit

From Sanskrit शिवजी (śivajī).

Shivani

Sanskrit

From Sanskrit शिवानी (śivānī), an epithet linked to the goddess Shiva's consort.

shive

Origin

A parallel form of sheave, from Middle English schyve, from Proto-West Germanic *skībā, from Proto-Germanic *skībǭ, presumably through an Old English *sċīfe (though it is not attested before the Middle English period). Cognate with German Scheibe, late Old Norse skífa (“slice”), brauðskífa (“slice of bread”) (whence Danish skive (“disc, slice”)), Dutch schijf (“disc, slice”).

shiver

Origin

Origin uncertain — possibly related to an old word for splitting into fragments, later applied to the trembling of the body.

Shizuko

Japanese

From Japanese しずこ (Shizuko).

shlenter

Origin

From Afrikaans slenter (“ploy, scam, stroll, saunter”).

Shlomo

Hebrew

From Biblical Hebrew שְׁלֹמֹה (šəlōmōh), built on שָׁלוֹם (šālôm, "peace") — the same name as English "Solomon."

sho

Japanese

Borrowed from Japanese 笙 (shō).

shoah

Origin

From Hebrew שׁוֹאָה (šōʾā, “catastrophe”).

shoal

Old English

From Old English sceald ("shallow"); the fish sense developed as a separate, related word for a shallow gathering of fish.

shoat

Origin

From Middle English schote, of uncertain origin. Perhaps a special use of Middle English schote (“projectile, young shoot”), or perhaps of Middle Low German origin, cognate with West Flemish schote (“young piglet”).

shock

French

From an old Germanic root meaning to jolt or collide, arriving in English via French and Dutch influences on the word for a violent impact.

shocking

Origin

From shock + -ing.

shod

Middle English

The old past-tense/participle form of "shoe," from Middle English.

shoddy

Origin

Originally described cheap recycled wool fabric, of unclear ultimate origin; the "poor quality" sense grew from that fabric being unfit for serious use.

shoe

Old English

From Old English sceoh, of uncertain deeper origin, possibly linked to a root meaning "to move quickly."

shoebox

Origin

From shoe + box.

shoelace

Origin

From shoe + lace.

shoeless

Origin

From Middle English sholes, scholes, equivalent to shoe + -less. Compare Dutch schoenloos (“shoeless”), German schuhlos (“shoeless”), Old Norse skólaus (“shoeless”).

shoemaker

Middle English

From Middle English shomaker, from shoe + maker.

shoeshine

Origin

From shoe + shine.

shoestring

Origin

The noun is derived from shoe + string. The adjective is derived from the noun, while the verb is derived from terms such as shoestring catch and shoestring tackle.

shoetree

Origin

From shoe + tree.

shogun

Japanese

From Japanese 将軍 (shōgun), short for a longer title meaning roughly "great general who subdues barbarians."

shogunate

Origin

From shogun + -ate, a suffix marking rank or office.

shoji

Japanese

Borrowed from Japanese 障子 (shōji).

Sholto

Origin

Of Scottish origin.

Shona

Origin

Scottish Anglicized form of Seonag ( =Joan) and an American variant of Shauna.

Shone

Welsh

Anglicized form of Welsh Siôn (“John”).

shonky

Origin

From 1970s; possibly from dialectal English shonk (“smart”).

shoo

Middle English

From a Middle English interjection used to drive animals away, echoed in similar words across Germanic languages.

shook

Origin

Compare shock (“a bundle of sheaves”).

shooketh

Origin

From shook + -eth (as an archaic, formal suffix added to the slang term for ironic humour).

Shoop

Origin

A clipped, informal form of "Photoshop" used as a slang verb and noun once photo-editing became a casual internet activity.

shoot

Old English

From Old English scēotan ("to shoot, throw"), from an ancient Germanic root meaning to hurl or launch quickly.

shooter

Origin

From shoot + -er, formed the same way as many English agent nouns.

shooting

Middle English

From Middle English shoting, schoting, from Old English scotung (“shooting”), from Proto-Germanic *skutungō, equivalent to shoot + -ing. Cognate with Dutch schieting, German Erschießung (“shooting”), Swedish skjutning (“shooting”).

shootout

Origin

Formed from the phrasal verb "shoot out."

shop

Old English

From Old English sceoppa ("shed, booth, stall"), from an ancient Germanic root for a barn or shed; the verb was formed later from the noun.

shopette

Origin

From shop + -ette. From being a small general store.

shopfront

Origin

From shop + front.

shopkeeper

Origin

From shop + keeper.