Etymology — The Origins of English Words

embargo

Latin

From Spanish embargar, "to seize or restrain", ultimately from a Latin root meaning "to bar".

emancipation

Latin

From Latin emancipatio, "a releasing from ownership" — historically the legal act of freeing a son or slave from a father's or owner's authority.

elsewhere

Middle English

From Middle English elswher, from Old English elles hwǣr and elles hwerġen (“elsewhere”); corresponding with else + where. Cognate with Old High German alleswār (“elsewhere”), whence Middle High German alleswā, alswā (“elsewhere”).

elite

Latin

From French élite, "the chosen ones," from élire, "to elect" — ultimately the same Latin root as English "elect."

elimination

Latin

From Latin ēliminātiō, from eliminate plus the noun suffix -ion.

elevation

Latin

From Latin ēlevātiō, from elevate plus the noun suffix -ion.

elation

Latin

From Latin elatio, "a raising up" or "exaltation," from efferre, "to carry out or lift up."

ejaculation

French

From French éjaculation, borrowed from Latin ēiaculārī.

earnest

Old English

From Old English eornest, meaning "zeal, seriousness, or even battle", related to Germanic words for vigour and diligence.

eager

Latin

From Old French aigre ("sharp, keen"), from Latin acer — the same root behind "acid" and "acerbic".

dunce

Origin

From the name of the medieval philosopher John Duns Scotus — ironically a brilliant scholar. When Renaissance thinkers mocked his followers as old-fashioned, "dunce" shifted from meaning "stubborn traditionalist" to simply "stupid person."

drowsy

Old English

Related to an old English word for drooping or becoming sluggish — the same idea behind feeling "heavy" with sleep.

drown

Old Norse

Of uncertain origin, though likely shaped by influence from Old Norse drukkna, a related word for the same idea.

drift

Middle English

From Middle English drift, dryft (“act of driving, drove, shower of rain or snow, impulse”), from Old English *drift (“drift”), from Proto-Germanic *driftiz (“drift”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰreybʰ- (“to drive, push”). Equivalent to drive + -t; cognate with North Frisian drift (“drift”), Saterland Frisian Drift (“current, flow, stream, drift”), Dutch drift (“drift, passion, urge”), German Drift (“drift”) and Trift (“drove, pasture”), Danish drift (“impulse, instinct”), Swedish drift (“impulse, instinct”), Icelandic drift (“drift, snow-drift”).

dredge

Dutch

Possibly from Scots dreg-boat ("dredging boat"), or from a Middle Dutch word for a drag-net, ultimately linked to "drag."

draper

Old French

From Old French drapier, "cloth seller," from drap, "cloth" — also the origin of the common English surname Draper.

drape

Old French

From Old French draper, "to full cloth," from drap ("cloth"), ultimately from a Germanic root meaning "to beat or strike" — the same root behind English "drub."

drab

Old French

Probably from Old French drap ("cloth"), the colour sense coming from the natural, undyed shade of the fabric.

douse

Germanic

Probably from a North Germanic root related to Swedish dunsa, "to fall clumsily" or "plunge down."

douche

French

From French douche ("shower"), from Italian doccia.

domination

Latin

From Old French domination, from Latin dominatio, "rule, mastery," from dominari, "to rule."

dominant

Latin

Borrowed from French dominant, from Latin dominari, "to rule."

dolly

Origin

From "doll," derived from the name Dorothy, later extended to various small movable devices.

document

Latin

From Latin documentum, "lesson" or "proof," from docere, "to teach."