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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 re- + unite.

From Latin unitus, past participle of unio ("to make into one"), ultimately from unus ("one").

From Old English martyrdom, built from "martyr" plus the suffix "-dom," which denotes a state or condition.

A shortening of stereophonic or stereotype, ultimately from Greek stereos, meaning "solid."

Origin uncertain; possibly related to an Old Norse word for a cut or clearing, though it may simply be an imitative or sound-symbolic coinage.

From frantic + -ally.

Coined in 1834 from Greek ion, "going," the present participle of eimi ("I go") — chosen because ions move toward oppositely charged electrodes.

Borrowed from Hindi lūṭ ("booty, plunder"); its casual use for "money" or "prizes" in general spread through American English in the 20th century.

From Old French leüt, probably from Arabic al-ʿūd ("the wood"), by way of Old Occitan — the same root gives us the modern word "oud."

A compound of fire and cracker, describing the sharp cracking bang it produces.

From Portuguese or Spanish casta ("lineage, breed"), thought to trace to Latin castus ("pure, chaste").

From Old English beorhtnes, from bright plus the suffix -ness.

Persian · 1754

Coined in 1754 by the writer Horace Walpole, based on an old Persian fairy tale, "The Three Princes of Serendip," whose heroes kept stumbling onto good fortune by accident.

From Old Northern French trique, related to Old French trichier, "to cheat or deceive" — ultimately connected to Latin words meaning "to dodge" or "haggle."

From Latin suggerere, "to bring up from below, supply, advise," from sub- ("from below") plus gerere ("to carry").

From Anglo-Norman suggestioun, from Latin suggestio, from suggerere ("to suggest").

From Old French reward/regard, related to reguarder, "to look back at" or "to guard" — ultimately from Germanic roots shared with "regard" and "guard".

From Italian studio, meaning "room for study," ultimately from Latin studium.

From Middle English pumpe, likely from a Dutch or Low German word for a pipe or water conduit.

From own + the agent-forming suffix -er.

From Middle English newes, literally "new things" — formed by adding a plural-style ending to "new," though it functions as a singular noun today.

From Old English "miscian," from a Proto-Germanic root meaning "to mix," ultimately related to Latin "misceo" (the source of "mixture" and "miscellaneous").

The past-participle adjective form of "mix," reinforced over time by the related French "mixte" and Latin "mixtus."

From Old French limite, from Latin līmes ("boundary, border").