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.

Browse etymology by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Recently added

Borrowed from French bivouac, itself from a Swiss-German word meaning an extra night watch kept by a town guard.

From "biology" plus the agent suffix "-ist."

From Latin biceps, "two-headed," from bis ("twice") plus caput ("head") — so named because the muscle has two points of attachment, or "heads," at the shoulder.

From Middle English betrayen, built from "be-" plus an old word meaning "to betray," ultimately related to "traitor" and "treason."

From Old Norse berserkr, likely combining "bear" and "shirt/coat" — a reference to the bear pelts these warriors reportedly wore into combat.

From Old Norse berserkr, describing a legendary Norse warrior who fought in a wild frenzy, possibly wearing a bear pelt ("bear-shirt") into battle.

From Old English becweþan, "to declare, to leave by will," built from be- plus cweþan ("to say").

From Old French benevolent, from Latin benevolens, "wishing well" — literally bene ("well") plus volens ("wishing").

From Old English beleccgan, "to lay around, secure" — built from be- ("around") plus lay, later specialised into rope and climbing use.

From Old English bī healfe, literally "by the side of" — the idea of standing at someone's side, representing them.

From Middle English bestely, formed from beast + -ly.

From Old English bēam, which originally meant "tree" or "piece of wood" — the sense survives in words like "boom" (a ship's spar) and in some plant names.

From Old English "bēacn," meaning "sign" or "signal," related to the word "buoy."

From Old French "baubel," meaning a child's toy or trinket, ultimately from Latin "bellus," meaning "pretty."

From Old French baniere, ultimately Germanic in origin and related to band — originally a military flag carried to identify a commander's troops.

From bank plus the agent suffix -er, modeled on the equivalent French banquier.

From Old English bealu ("evil, harm"), an older sense now mostly obsolete; the "bundle" sense comes from a separate, related Germanic word for a compressed package of goods.

From Old Norse beita ("food, bait"), related to the verb bite.

From Old French baile ("palisade, enclosure"), from Latin bacula, plural of baculum ("stick, rod").

From Old French bail ("custody, lease") and the verb bailler ("to hand over"), from Latin baiulare ("to carry or bear").

From back + -er.

From Latin assumptio ("a taking up"), from assumere (see "assume"), plus the noun suffix "-ion".

From Latin assertio, from assert- (see "assert"), plus the noun suffix "-ion".

From Latin assertus, past participle of asserere ("to claim, declare"), from ad- ("to") plus serere ("to join, arrange in a row").