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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Traced back through French and Medieval Latin to an Arabic word, ultimately from a Greek word for "dragonwort" — related to "dragon."

From Middle French directif; the noun use comes from the French feminine form directive.

A compound of "road" + "kill," coined to describe animals struck and killed by traffic.

From Middle French revisiter and Latin revisitare, built from re- plus visit.

From "odd" in the old sense of "uneven" — the imbalance between two outcomes.

From war plus -ing.

From New Latin Velociraptor, combining Latin vēlōx ("swift") and raptor ("thief, plunderer"). The film Jurassic Park popularised a larger, more human-sized depiction based on a related dinosaur, Deinonychus, after some paleontologists argued the two genera should be merged.

From Old French peré, ultimately from Latin pirum, "pear."

Formed from "satisfy" plus the "-ing" ending.

From Latin specimen, "example, sign," from specio, "to observe."

Named in 1930 after a favourite horse belonging to the Mars family, who created the candy bar.

From moral + -ly.

From Middle English thrower, equivalent to throw + -er.

From string plus the agent suffix -er, originally "one who strings" (such as strings on a bow).

Probably from a Low German word for a small pastry, moofin.

A learned borrowing from Latin condonare ("to forgive, remit").

A compound of "sting" and "ray", referring to the barbed tail of this flat fish.

From "bed" plus "time," with close cousins in other Germanic languages such as Dutch bedtijd and German Bettzeit.

A clipping of "debutante" or "debut."

From un- (\"not\") plus washed.

From Latin scrūtinium ("a search, inquiry"), from scrūtārī ("to search thoroughly"), ultimately connected to a word for sifting through rubbish — literally, digging through the trash for answers.

From examine + the agent suffix -er.

From Latin trophaeum, "monument of victory," from Ancient Greek tropaion, referring to a display marking the rout of an enemy.

An imitative word, echoing the sound of a light tap or bounce.