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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Borrowed from French observant, from the same root as observe.

From Middle English hobblen, related to Middle Dutch hobbelen, of similar meaning.

From "pal" (a close friend) plus the informal adjective suffix "-y."

From mate + -y.

Abbreviation of shit-faced.

From Late Latin bigamia, formed from Latin bis ("twice") plus Greek gamos ("marriage") — literally "double marriage." The word entered English through Anglo-Norman and Middle French.

From Old French reculer, "to move back," from re- plus a Latin root related to culus — literally suggesting retreating "rear-first."

From Medieval Latin incentivus, "striking up a tune," from Latin canō, "to sing" — the sense shifted to "motivating" partly under the influence of the unrelated-looking incendō, "to set on fire."

From Old French coillir, "to gather or pick," ultimately from Latin colligere, "to collect" — the same root that gives us "collect" and "cull."

Originally a trademark of Sony, launched in 1979, that became so popular the name was used generically for any portable cassette player.

From an earlier sense of "neat, spruce," borrowed from Low German smuk ("pretty, trim").

From Latin complacens, "very pleasing," from com- ("together") plus placere ("to please").

From Italian casino, a diminutive of casa ("house"), tracing back to Latin casa ("cottage, hut").

From Old French coi, meaning "quiet" or "still," from Latin quietus — making "coy" a distant relative of "quiet" and "quit."

Ultimately from Old French coper/couper ("to strike, cut"), related to the idea of "trading blows" — the sense shifted over time from fighting to dealing with a problem generally.

From pure plus the noun suffix -ity, ultimately from Latin puritas.

From Arabic qirat, "small unit of weight," ultimately from Greek keration, "little horn" or "carob seed" — carob seeds were once used as a natural, fairly consistent weight for measuring gems.

Named after brothers Wilhelm and Paul Mauser, the German gunsmiths and engineers who founded the company and designed its early firearms.

From Latin captio, "a taking, a seizing," from capio, "to take" — the sense shifted over time from a legal "taking" to the modern "heading" or "label."

Built in English from "capable" plus the suffix "-ity," which turns adjectives into nouns.

A clipped form of signature.

From broad + band, originally describing a wide range of signal frequencies used for high-capacity data transmission.

From non- plus existent.

From base + line, originally a surveying term for a reference line used in measurement.