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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Built from "out-" plus "door."

From "(with)in" plus "door," first recorded in 1711.

From "in" plus "doors," originally the two-word phrase "within doors."

From Old French cofin, "basket" or "box," from Latin cophinus, itself from Greek kophinos, "a basket." It originally meant any box or case before narrowing to its current burial sense.

From Latin proximus, the superlative form of prope, "near."

From an Anglo-Norman word meaning "to cut to pieces" or "to mutilate," ultimately of Germanic origin, related distantly to "mayhem."

From French "pacifique," ultimately from Latin roots meaning "peace-making."

From Medieval Latin externus, "outward, external".

From Old French referer, from Latin referre ("to carry back, report"). A doublet of relate.

From an Anglo-Norman word for the office of a servant in charge of dishes, ultimately from Latin scutella ("dish, bowl").

From Old French dresseur, related to the verb "dress" in its original sense of "to arrange or prepare."

From Old English sceanca, "leg," related to old Germanic words for leg or thigh.

From re- (\"again\") plus direct.

From Latin carnalis, "of the flesh," from caro/carnis ("flesh, meat") — the same root behind "carnivore" and "carnation."

From Old French "estrangier" ("foreign"), ultimately from Latin "extraneus" — the same root as "strange" and "estrange."

From Latin obscurus, "dark, dusky, indistinct."

Borrowed from Italian peperoni, meaning "bell peppers" — the name shifted meaning when it crossed into American English.

The "-ing" form of "dust," used both for the chore and for describing a thin, dust-like layer of something.

From "wood" plus the adjective ending "-y."

A literal translation of a Chinese phrase meaning "wash brain," which entered English usage during the Korean War.

From Spanish "burrito," literally "little donkey" — a diminutive of "burro." The name may come from the dish's resemblance to a rolled pack carried by a donkey.

From Old English macung, the noun form of "make" plus the ending "-ing."

Formed from "give" plus the -ing suffix.

Traces back through Old French to Latin scintilla, "a spark" — the same root that gives us "scintillate" and "stencil."