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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First attested in 1871; back-formation from notation or from Latin notātus, perfect passive participle of notō; either way, see -ate (verb-forming suffix). By surface analysis, note + -ate.

From Latin nīsus (“pressure, exertion”).

From a Slavic language, probably Russian о́бласть (óblastʹ, “region, province”), borrowed from Old Church Slavonic область (oblastĭ), from Proto-Slavic *obolstь, from earlier *obvolstь, *obvoldtь, a compound of *o(b)- (“over”) + *volstь (“rule, power, authority”), thus originally probably meaning "a region ruled over". Compare Proto-Slavic *obvoldati (“to rule”).

From Edo obeche.

From non- + commonality.

From Middle English ofcutten, of-kitten, equivalent to off- + cut.

From Middle English overful, overfulle, from Old English oferfull (“overfull”), from Proto-West Germanic [Term?], from Proto-Germanic *uberfullaz; equivalent to over- + full. Cognate with German übervoll (“overfull”), Swedish överfull (“overfull”).

From other + ways.

From out- + roper.

Apparently from ninny (although attested slightly later) + -hammer, of unknown origin; perhaps compare earlier hammer-headed.

From non- + hearing.

From non- + missile.

From non- + sweet.

From opposite + -ness.

From non- + literal.

From Middle English orped, orpud, from Old English orped (“grown up, adult, of full strength, stout, active, bold”), of unknown origin. Possibly from Old English or- (“without”) + pād (“tunic, cloak”), literally "without cloak, tunic-less" in the sense of "ready to fight, brave, daring" (compare English berserk), though many see this as unconvincing.

From notch + -y.

From Middle French ossifrage, from Latin ossifraga (“osprey”), ossifragus (“osprey”), from ossifragus (“bone breaking”).

From Middle English overthwertly; equivalent to overthwart + -ly.

From non- + inhabitant.

From non- + articulated.

Coined by Romanian psychologist and chemist Corneliu E. Giurgea in 1972, derived from the Ancient Greek words νόος (nóos, “mind”) and τροπέω (tropéō, “to turn”). By surface analysis, noo(s) + -tropic, literally “mind changing”.

From Middle English *oxeslyppe, from Old English oxanslyppe (“oxlip”), from oxan, genitive of oxa (“ox”) + slyppe (“paste, slimy substance”). Compare cowslip, of similar formation.

From Middle English noysom; equivalent to noy + -some (short for annoy, from an(n)oien, enoien from Anglo-Norman anuier, from Old French enuier (French ennuyer), from Late Latin inodiare, from in- (intensive prefix) + odium (“hate”)).