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 un- + bridled — a bridle controls a horse, so "unbridled" originally meant a horse with no bridle on, free to run wherever it liked.

From Old English nawiht, literally "no thing" — built from ne ("not") plus wiht ("thing, creature"), the same wiht that survives in "wight."

From Latin dominatrix, the feminine form of "one who rules," built on the same root as "dominate."

The police sense comes from the surname of Sir Robert Peel, who founded London's Metropolitan Police — the same source as the nickname "bobby."

Coined by scientist Michael Faraday in 1833, combining Greek ēlektron ("amber," the root of "electricity") with hodos, "way" or "path."

A blend of "transfer" and "resistor," coined by American engineer John Robinson Pierce in 1947.

From Latin spectator, "watcher," from specto, "to watch," from specio, "to look at."

From Middle English enducen, borrowed from Latin inducere ("lead in, bring in"), from in- plus ducere ("to lead").

From Latin stupor ("numbness, insensibility"), distantly related to stupid and stupendous.

From Old French compleindre, ultimately from Latin planctus, "a lamenting" — related to "plaint" and "complain."

Formed from "percuss" (to strike) plus the adjective suffix "-ive".

From Greek rheumatismos ("discharge, flow"), from rheuma ("stream, flow") — reflecting the old belief that such pain was caused by fluids flowing through the body.

From by- + line.

From Middle English "bouget," a small leather bag or pouch, from Old French "bougette" — the word originally meant the pouch a treasurer carried, before shifting to mean the financial plan itself.

From Old French grievance, built on the verb grever ("to burden, to harm") — related to "grieve."

From Old French Bernard, ultimately from Frankish *Bernhard, combining words for "bear" and "hardy" — popularized as a name by several medieval saints.

From Latin privilegium, originally meaning a law made for or against a specific individual — from privus ("private") plus lex ("law").

Formed from "bias" plus the "-ed" ending.

From advise plus the agent ending -or.

From Latin impedire, "to shackle the feet" — from pes, "foot" (compare pedestrian). One of its earliest recorded uses in English is in Shakespeare's Macbeth.

From Middle English midwif, from "mid" ("with") + "wif" ("woman") — literally "with-woman", someone who is with the mother during birth.

From the stem of Latin legislator plus -ure, matching French législature; first recorded in English in the 1670s.

The religious sense comes from Fula alfaa; the car sense is simply short for the Italian manufacturer Alfa Romeo.

From "Siam" plus the suffix "-ese."