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.

Browse etymology by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Recently added

Built from dis- plus illusion — literally the removal of an illusion.

A variant of marquis; unusually for English, marquess ends in "-ess" yet refers to a man, since the "-ess" here comes from the French spelling rather than marking the feminine.

From broad + side, originally a naval term for firing all the cannons on one side of a ship at once.

A shortening of "brigantine", itself from Italian brigantino. The "jail" sense developed because old brigs were sometimes used to hold prisoners.

From Old French retenir, from Latin retinere, "to hold back," from re- + tenere ("to hold").

From French méthodologie, built from method + -ology ("study of").

From Old French par amour, "by/through love" — originally an adverbial phrase meaning "passionately" that was later reinterpreted as a noun meaning "beloved person."

From Latin praefectus, \"one placed in charge,\" from praeficere, \"to put in charge of.\"

From Middle French mutiner, related to words for rebellion and unrest.

Formed from eff, itself derived from the letter name of F, plus "-ing."

From Old English bedding, built from "bed" plus the "-ing" ending, meaning roughly "things belonging to a bed."

From Old English sealf, "ointment," tracing back to a very old root meaning "to smear."

From Cantonese hong4, meaning "trade" or "business".

From Late Latin gonorrhoea, from Ancient Greek roots meaning "seed" and "flow" — an old (inaccurate) theory about the discharge symptom.

From Middle French gaieté, built on gai ("gay, merry") — the same root as the English word "gay."

From Caucasus, the mountain range, + -ian. The racial-classification sense was popularized in the 1790s by the German scientist Johann Friedrich Blumenbach, who mistakenly believed the first humans originated there — the theory itself is no longer considered scientifically valid.

From Old French destorbance, from disturb, following the same Latin root disturbare.

From un- + burden — to remove a burden.

Built from un- + break + -able — literally "not able to be broken."

Borrowed from French piston.

From Old English ceaf, related to similar words for grain husks in other Germanic languages.

From Latin sanctitas, from sanctus ("holy").

From Middle English unplesaunt, from un- + pleasant.

From Old French chevalier, "horseman," from Late Latin caballarius, from caballus, "horse." A close relative of "cavalier" and Spanish "caballero," all built on the same word for horse.