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 sneak + -er — named for how quietly rubber-soled shoes let you walk.

A compound of bag and man, originally describing someone who literally carried a bag of goods or money.

From Old French curuner, ultimately from Medieval Latin for "guardian of the crown's pleas" — the role began as a way of protecting the king's legal and financial interests.

First recorded in the late 1700s; likely a child's alteration of "brother," though it may also trace back to British dialect "butty," meaning workmate or companion, especially among coal miners.

Literally "abandoned by God," from god plus forsaken; the literal religious meaning gave way to a general sense of bleakness and desolation.

From Italian grotta, ultimately from Latin crypta — a doublet of the word "crypt."

From Old English landhlaford, from land + lord — originally meaning the lord who owned the land.

From Old English hord ("treasure, stored-up wealth"), from a Germanic root ultimately meaning "something hidden".

From Old French braon ("fleshy part of the body"), tracing back to a Germanic word for roasted meat.

From Old French empairement; from impair plus -ment.

From Latin studiosus, related to studium ("zeal, devotion to study").

From Old French malice, from Latin malitia, "badness or ill will," itself from malus, "bad."

From Middle English restoracion, ultimately from Latin restauratio, tied to the verb restore.

From Latin innocentia, "harmlessness," from innocens, "not harmful" — in- ("not") plus nocens ("harmful").

A compound of head and master, denoting the person at the "head" of the teaching staff.

From Latin detector, "one who uncovers" — from detegere plus the agent suffix -or.

A combination of strip and tease.

From Latin fictīcius, from fingō ("to shape, feign") — the same root as fiction.

From Late Latin spīnālis, "of the spine," from spīna, "prickle" or "spine."

From intimate plus the noun suffix -cy.

From Latin infectus, past participle of inficere, "to dye, taint, spoil."

A blunt compound of "ass" and "wipe," first recorded in print around 1947.

Coined in 1909 by the psychologist Edward Titchener from Greek empatheia ("feeling into"), to translate the German word Einfühlung.

From Hindi "sari," ultimately from Sanskrit "shati," meaning "strip of cloth."