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 Old English stūpian ("to bow, bend"), a Germanic word related to Dutch stuipen and Old Norse stúpa, both meaning to bend forward.

Borrowed from Canadian French caribou, from the Mi'kmaq word qalipu, meaning roughly "the one that shovels (snow)" — a nod to how the animal paws through snow to reach food.

From Spanish iguana, from the Taíno word iwana.

From Latin derelictus, "completely abandoned," the past participle of derelinquere, "to abandon utterly."

A blend of "hitch" (to get a ride) and "hike" (to travel on foot).

Originally called The Celebrated Chop Waltz, because of the chopping motion of the fingers on the keys.

From German Kurt.

From Greek holókaustos, "wholly burnt," originally referring to a sacrifice completely consumed by fire before it became the standard term for the Nazi genocide.

From Latin explosus (the past participle of explodere, "to drive out") plus the adjective ending -ive.

From Latin explodere, "to drive off the stage by clapping" — originally a theatre term for booing a bad actor off, later shifting to mean "burst violently" by the 1880s.

From "slack" plus the suffix -er, related to the phrase "slack off".

From "occasion" plus the adjective suffix "-al".

From "capital" plus "-ist," on the model of French capitaliste.

From earlier forms like "craunch" and "cranch", words invented to imitate the sound itself.

From Latin quantum, "how much" — the neuter form of quantus.

From Greek parasitos, originally "a person who eats at another's table" (para- "beside" + sitos "food") — a flattering guest who dined for free before the word took on its harsher biological and social meanings.

From Latin mȳthicus + -al; by surface analysis, myth + -ical.

From Latin frugalis, "thrifty, virtuous," via Middle French.

From Late Latin parochialis, related to a church district, ultimately from Greek paroikia, "community, diocese."

From Old French enclosure, from enclore ("to enclose"), from Latin includere.

From lime plus stone.

From Greek hypoteinousa ("stretching under, subtending"), describing the side that stretches opposite the right angle.

From Old English twegen, "two" (masculine form), the same root behind the modern word "two"; it survived mainly in older or poetic English.

Borrowed from German Quarz, ultimately from a Slavic word related to "hard."