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 Latin persona, "mask" or "character," possibly borrowed originally from Etruscan.

From French émotion, from émouvoir ("to excite" or "to stir up"), based on Latin emovere, "to move out" or "agitate."

From Old English sċuldor, of uncertain deeper origin, possibly related to "shield".

Borrowed from Latin inventor.

From Old English þresċold, "doorsill" — related to thresh (to beat grain), since a threshold was once literally the beaten, trodden strip of floor at a doorway.

From Old French perilleus, built from peril + -ous, echoing Latin periculosus.

From Latin varius, "different, diverse, changeable" — the same root that gives us "vary" and "variety."

A straightforward compound of "speed" and "boat."

From Old English "īfig", an ancient Germanic plant name going back to a very old Indo-European root — the plant itself has been climbing walls in English for well over a thousand years.

Borrowed in the 1600s from a Low German word meaning literally "crane-berry", because the plant's stem and blossom reminded people of a crane's head and neck.

A variant of the older word thrum, describing the rhythmic playing of stringed instruments.

From French lingerie, "linen goods," ultimately from Latin linum ("flax"). English speakers usually say it with a nasal "-ahn-zhay" ending, mimicking French even though the pronunciation doesn't quite match the original.

From Old English "pluccian", meaning to pull or tear away; the noun sense of "courage" grew out of an older meaning of "heart and lungs" — the organs pulled from a butchered animal, with "heart" coming to stand for bravery.

Spanish · 1700

First recorded in English in the late 1700s; its origin is uncertain, though it may be related to a Spanish word for sinking bow-first.

From Old English winċe, related to the word "wink" through a shared root meaning "to bend or turn".

From Old French ravineus, related to a root meaning "predatory" or "plundering" — not actually related to the bird "raven," though people often assume it is.

From Middle English tiklen, of uncertain origin — possibly linked to "tick" (a light touch) plus the frequentative ending "-le", meaning "to touch lightly again and again."

Formed from land + the suffix -ing.

From "scaffold" plus "-ing," describing the overall system of temporary supports.

From "tips" plus -y, on the same pattern as "artsy" or "folksy."

Borrowed from Yiddish "oy," a similar exclamation of dismay.

From Ancient Greek amoibe, "change" — a nod to how constantly the organism's shape shifts.

From Old English holen/holeġn, an old Germanic word for the same prickly evergreen plant.

A shortening of "perambulator," itself built from Latin "perambulare" ("to walk through") plus the agent suffix "-or."