English dictionary, thesaurus, translations & etymology

"V" Word Origins

Where do words come from? Trace the origin and history of any English word, from its Latin, Greek or Old English roots through to its modern meaning. Every etymology is sourced.

“V” Word Origins

From (the stem of) Latin vortex + -al.

From Dutch Vos. Doublet of Fox and Fuchs.

Surname sense probably from Low German Voss, Voß (“fox”). Doublet of Fuchs and Fohs.

From Latin votus, past participle of vovere (“to vow, to devote”).

From Latin votum, "a vow" — from voveo, "to vow." It's a doublet of the word vow.

From vote + -less.

Formed from vote plus the agent suffix -er.

Formed by adding -ing to vote.

From Middle French votif, from Latin vōtīvus (“votive”), from vōtum (“vow”).

From Middle English vouchen via Anglo-Norman and Old French vocher, ultimately from Latin vocare, "to call, summon."

From vouch plus the agent suffix -er.

From vouch + safe, written as two words in Middle English and early Modern English.

From vouchsafe + -ment.

From Old French vu, from Latin votum, "a promise, dedication" — a doublet of vote.

From Old French vouel (compare modern French voyelle), from Latin vocalis, "voiced" — a doublet of vocal.

From Latin vōx (“voice”). Doublet of voice.

From Old French voiage, ultimately from Latin viaticum ("travel money/provisions") — a doublet of viaticum.

From voyage plus the agent suffix -er.

From French voyeur, from voir, "to see."

An initialism of virtual private network.

An imitative word, formed to mimic the sound itself.

Borrowed from Vietnamese Vũ.

From French Vuitton.

From the Roman god Vulcan, god of fire and metalworking. The Star Trek sense comes from the fictional planet Vulcan, itself named after the god by 19th-century astronomers proposing a hypothetical planet near the sun.

From Latin Vulcanalia.

Directly from Latin Vulcāniānus or from Latin Vulcānius + -an within English, from Vulcānus + -iānus (“-ian”) or -ius (“-y: forming adjectives”). In reference to a type or stage of volcanic activity, via Italian Vulcaniano, with specific reference to Giuseppe Mercalli's observations of the 1888–90 eruptions of the Aeolian island Vulcano. Equivalent to Vulcan + -ian. Doublet of volcanian. Compare slightly earlier Middle French vulcanien.

From Latin vulgaris, "of the common people," from vulgus, "the crowd, the masses."

From vulgar plus the noun suffix -ity.

From vulnerable plus the noun suffix -ity.

From Late Latin vulnerabilis, "wounding," from Latin vulnero, "to wound."

From vulnerable + -ness.

Borrowed from Latin vulpīnus (“foxy, fox-like”), from vulpēs, earlier volpēs (“fox”), from Proto-Indo-European *wl(o)p- (“fox”). Cognate with Welsh llywarn (“fox”), Ancient Greek ἀλώπηξ (alṓpēx), Armenian աղուէս (aġuēs), Albanian dhelpër, Lithuanian vilpišỹs (“wildcat”), Sanskrit लोपाश (lopāśa, “jackal, fox”).

From Old French voutoir, from Latin vultur. It replaced the native Old English word for the bird, ufe.

Borrowed from Latin vulva, "womb," related to volvo, "to turn, wrap around" — the same root behind "evolve" and "revolve."

Short for "venomous agent X."

Initialism of Vx, single-engine.

Initialism of Vy, single-engine.

A rare spelling variant of Vivian.