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 Persian "bâzâr," passed into English through Ottoman Turkish and Italian.

From Latin stabulum, related to stare ("to stand"), via Old French stable.

Probably built on "batty" ("crazy") plus "bats in one's belfry," and likely influenced by the similar slang term "apeshit."

From a Middle English mishearing of "a noumper" as "an oumper" — the same kind of word-boundary shift that gave us "an apron" from "a napron." It ultimately traces to Old French nonper, "not equal," since an umpire is the odd, tie-breaking third party.

From use + -ful, formed in Middle English to mean "full of use."

From Latin Cupīdō, "desire" or "passionate longing," from cupiō, "I desire."

From Latin familiaris, "of the household" — originally describing someone as close as family.

A nautical term — sailors had to keep their cramped quarters tidy and secure against rough seas, giving rise to "shaped like (a well-kept) ship," later shortened to shipshape.

A shortened Scots form of "effect."

Origin uncertain, possibly an alteration of "shindy," an older word for a noisy commotion.

From Anglo-Norman priorie, related to prior.

From Old French rectour, from Latin rector ("ruler, guide"), related to regere ("to rule, direct").

From Anglo-Norman vicaire and Latin vicarius, "substitute" — the same root as "vicarious."

From Old French chapele, from Late Latin cappella ("little cloak"), originally referring to the shrine that housed St Martin's cloak.

From Latin basilica, from Greek basilike (stoa), "royal (hall)," from basileus, "king."

From Latin cathedralis, "of a bishop's chair," from cathedra ("seat, throne"), ultimately from Greek kathedra.

From inter- ("between") plus face ("shape, form").

From Middle French mythologie, from Latin mythologia, from Greek mythos ("story") plus -logia ("study of").

Attested since 1822; from Scots yank. Unknown origin.

From Old French horror, going back to Latin horrere, "to bristle or shudder" — the same idea as hair standing on end from fear.

From Latin magnum, "great" — the wine-bottle sense is short for magnum bonum, and the firearm sense was registered as a trademark by Smith & Wesson in 1935.

Borrowed from Russian búrka; the earlier origin of the word is disputed.

The building sense probably comes from Canadian French chantier, "lumberjack's camp"; the sea-song sense has a separate, less certain origin, possibly related to French chanter, "to sing."

A blend of Bombay (Mumbai's former name) and Hollywood.