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 Old Norse bálkr, "partition," combined with "head," reshaped in English as "bulk" + "head."

From un- + concerned.

From un- + compromising.

From Middle English unclere, from un- + clear.

From Old English unclǣne, from un- + clean.

From un- + checked.

From un- + changed.

From un- ("not") plus expected, the past participle of expect.

From un- + challenged.

Originally the board at the front of a horse-drawn carriage that stopped mud "dashed" up by the horse's hooves from splattering the driver.

From Middle English uncerteyn, from un- + certain.

From Middle English unbotonen, from un- + button.

Borrowed in the late 1600s from Italian broccoli, plural of broccolo ("cabbage sprout"), from brocco ("shoot" or "sprout") — a relative of "brocade" and "brochure," which share the same Latin root for something pointed.

From Latin inānis, meaning "empty" or "useless," of unknown deeper origin.

From Middle English chapeleyn, via Old French chapelain, tracing back to Late Latin cappellanus — originally someone who cared for a saint's relic (cappella, "little cloak"), which also gave us the word "chapel."

From Middle English fyrewoode, equivalent to fire and wood.

Imitative of the sound itself.

From Old English cloccian, an imitative word that mimics the sound itself — the same pattern shows up in German glucken and Dutch klokken.

Formed from "cartoon" plus the agent suffix "-ist," which marks a person who practises a skill or profession.

From Middle English pyke, going back to Old English and Old French words for a sharp point; the fish and the diving position both take their names from this same idea of something pointed.

Originally just the word for a bird's chirp; the social-media sense grew directly out of the name of the Twitter platform.

From quarter + back, naming the position's spot on the field just behind the line.

Of uncertain origin, first recorded in Middle English; possibly related to "flash" or a blend of "flow" and "gush."

From Latin recessus ("a withdrawing, a hidden or secluded spot"), from recedere ("to go back").