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 the scientific name Crustacea, based on Latin crusta ("shell" or "crust") — named for their hard outer shell.

A variant of an earlier Middle English word, ultimately from Latin asphodelus via Ancient Greek — a doublet of "asphodel." The initial "d" likely crept in from confusion with the Dutch phrase "de affodil," since the Netherlands was a major source of flower bulbs.

Arabic حَال (ḥāl, literally “state, condition”)

From Anglo-Norman "corner," ultimately from Latin "cornu" ("horn," and by extension "point" or "tip").

From Old English rǣran ("to raise, set upright"), from a Proto-Germanic root meaning "to cause to rise" — a doublet of raise, and related to rise.

From Latin conductus ("escorted, brought together"), past participle of conducere ("to bring together, lead").

A blend formed in the early days of the internet from "web" (short for World Wide Web) plus "site" (a location).

Borrowed via Middle French from Latin mutuus, meaning "reciprocal" or "borrowed" — it displaced an older native English word for the same idea.

Borrowed from Japanese 長崎 (Nagasaki).

Italian · 1919

From Italian bimbo ("baby, small child"), a variant of bambino. It entered American slang in 1919 meaning "a foolish man," then shifted by the 1920s to describe an attractive but unintelligent woman, popularized by Variety editor Jack Conway.

From Greek helix, meaning "something twisted or spiral."

From Old French prosperitet, from Latin prosperitas, from prosper + -ity.

From Latin associatus, past participle of associare ("to join, unite"), from ad- plus socius ("companion, ally").

From Old French curteisie/cortoisie, related to courteous, ultimately tied to "court" and the manners expected there.

A back-formation from illustration, ultimately from Latin illustrare, "to light up, make clear."

Formed from the phrasal verb "stand by," turned into a single noun.

From Greek exodos, "a going out," from ex- ("out") plus hodos ("road, path") — also the title of the Old Testament book describing the Israelites' departure from Egypt.

From Ancient Greek kônos ("cone, spinning top, pine cone"), via Latin cōnus and Old French cone.

From "pose" plus the agent suffix "-er."

From Middle English scremen, related to Dutch and Scandinavian words meaning \"to yell\" or \"to terrify.\"

Possibly a shortened form of an old Dutch word for drumbeat, or borrowed directly from a related Germanic word for the instrument.

From "sleepwalk" plus "-er," or "sleep" plus "walker."

Middle English · 1600

From the 1570s, originally meaning "to cut unevenly," a frequentative of Middle English haggen ("to chop"); the sense shifted to "argue over price" by around 1600.

From Latin correspondentia, related to "correspond" plus the suffix "-ence".