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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Shortened from camisole.

Formed from loud plus the adverb suffix -ly.

From Latin expediens, "advantageous," from expedire, "to make ready, be useful," from ex- ("out") plus pes ("foot") — the underlying image is of freeing the feet to move.

From Middle English menetime, a compound of mean ("intermediate") and time; the adverb comes from the phrase "in the meantime".

From Latin conveniens, "fitting together" — the same root as "convene."

Formed from "goof" plus "ball."

From sink plus the agent suffix -er.

From line plus the agent suffix -er — originally "something that lines," later extended to ships that run a fixed line/route.

From back + hoe.

From Old English sċearpnes, from sharp plus the noun-forming suffix -ness.

From cardio- ("heart") plus myopathy ("disease of muscle tissue").

A compound of "task" and "master."

Latinate variant of Lucy, feminine form of the Roman praenomen Lūcius.

From Middle English fotyng, built from foot + -ing.

An American reshaping of the French dance term chassé ("to chase" or "glide"), altered in pronunciation and spelling as it passed into everyday English.

Origin uncertain; possibly related to flim-flam ("nonsense, trickery") or a reshuffling of film ("thin layer") with the suffix -sy.

From Old English gerecenian, "to explain or recount," going back to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to make straight or right" — the same root behind the Latin word for "straight," rectus.

A variant of the older word "knag," referring to a small peg or block of wood.

From curve + ball, describing a pitch that curves in flight.

From "slide" plus "-er"; the small-burger sense started as a nickname for miniature steamed hamburgers at White Castle restaurants.

Borrowed from Norman French croquet, meaning "hook," related to "crochet" and "crotchet."

A compound of "fast" and "ball."

A compound of touch and stone, from the literal stone used to test metals.

From Anglo-Norman legal phrasing meaning roughly "it is provided," later shaped by influence from the word "view."