English dictionary, thesaurus, translations & etymology

Etymology — The origins of English words

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.

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From "UNiversity and Airline BOMBer," the FBI's case file designation.

Borrowed from Russian Во́лга (Vólga).

From Irish Sionainn, the name of the river; the surname is an anglicized form of Ó Seanaigh.

Scottish Gaelic

From Scottish Gaelic Cluaidh, of uncertain origin, possibly influenced by clut ("the cleansing one").

From a- ("not") + symmetrical.

From dastard ("a cowardly, sneaky person") plus the adjective suffix -ly.

From Latin posthumus, a respelling of postumus ('last,' the superlative of posterus, 'following'). The 'h' was added later because people wrongly linked the word to humus ('ground'), thinking of burial.

Borrowed from French monologue, modeled after "dialogue" and built from Greek roots meaning "single speech."

Via Middle French cadence from Old Italian cadenza ("a falling"), from Latin cadere, "to fall" — the same root behind "cadenza" and "chance."

From Old English rædels, meaning "counsel" or "puzzle," related to rede ("advice") — the same root that gives us the phrase "read someone's mind."

From German Schnabel, "beak," describing the tapered, beak-like shape of the load-bearing ends of these rail cars.

From grog (the watered rum drink) plus "-y" — originally describing sailors made unsteady by drink.

From Middle English fraught, originally meaning a ship's cargo (related to "freight") — the sense shifted from a ship being "loaded" with goods to a situation being "loaded" with tension.

A learned borrowing from Latin superbus, "proud, magnificent" — related to super, "above".

From physio- ("body/nature") plus therapy.

From the verb "gild" (to cover with gold) plus -ed.

A compound of red and neck, from the sunburned necks of farm labourers who worked outdoors.

An imitative, or onomatopoeic, word meant to sound like the noise of a punch landing.

A compound of "desk" and "top," first used for computers in the 1980s to describe machines meant to sit on an office desk.

Named after Cognac, the French town at the centre of its production.

Middle French · 1513

First recorded around 1513, likely from Middle French repris ("taken back"), related to reprendre ("to take back") — a cousin of "reprise."

From un- ("not") plus earthly.

From Middle French imprudent, from Latin imprudens, from im- ("not") + prudens ("foreseeing, judicious").