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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Borrowed from Italian romano, meaning "Roman".

Borrowed directly from German Ritter ("knight, rider"), related to English "rider."

From "rim" plus the agent suffix "-er."

From Old English hrycce ("rick, heap, pile"), an old Germanic word for a stacked pile.

Clippings of various words beginning with rep.

From Late Latin renalis, from Latin renes, "kidneys."

From Latin remittere ("to send back"), from re- + mittere ("to send").

From Old French recuser, from Latin recusare ("to decline, object to, refuse").

From Yiddish reb, itself borrowed from Hebrew rav ("master, teacher").

From Old English rēam ("cream"); the paper-quantity sense entered English later via Old French and ultimately Arabic rizma, "bundle."

From Middle French realité ("property, ownership"); a doublet of the word reality.

US slang from the 1960s, of uncertain origin, likely just a jokey use of the personal name Ralph rather than any older word.

Borrowed from Hindi राज (rāj, "rule, kingdom"), ultimately from the same ancient root as the Latin word behind "regal" and "royal".

Borrowed from Mexican Spanish cuarta, meaning "whip."

A blend of "quasi-stellar," coined in 1964 to describe these starlike radio sources.

Borrowed from Narragansett poquaûhock, meaning "hard clam," an Indigenous Algonquian word from New England.

From punt (to bet against the bank, or to kick a ball) plus the agent suffix -er.

Origin uncertain, possibly linked to a West Flemish word for something small.

From Middle English poffin; possibly related to Middle Cornish or Breton words for the bird, and influenced by "puff."

Borrowed from Spanish pueblo, "town, people," from Latin populus — a doublet of the English word "people."

Of uncertain origin, first appearing in English around 1700; possibly related to primp and prink.

First recorded in 16th-century Britain; the exact origin is unknown, though it may be linked to older slang senses meaning "thief" or "tinker."

From Middle English poppere, formed from "pop" plus the agent suffix "-er" — someone or something that pops.

Origin uncertain, possibly from French Alphonse, once used as slang for a "kept man."