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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From Old French espous/espose, itself from Latin sponsus/sponsa ("betrothed"), related to "espouse" and "sponsor".

From "compose" + the noun suffix "-ure."

A shortened form of "fantasy," which traces back through Old French and Latin to Ancient Greek phantasia, "imagination."

From "Nancy," a pet form of the names Agnes and Anne.

From Late Latin comprehensivus, from Latin comprehendere — see "comprehend."

A shortened, informal form of words beginning with "trans-" (transmission, transistor, transgender), plus the diminutive suffix -y.

A diminutive built from "gran" plus the suffix "-y."

From Latin aequatio, "an equalizing," from aequare ("to make equal").

From Hebrew dawid, literally "beloved," via Greek and Latin into Old English and Middle English.

First recorded in English in 1738, borrowed via French from a Bantu-language word from Angola.

From Latin serēnus, meaning "clear, cloudless, untroubled."

From Middle English pate, of uncertain origin, possibly linked to a Latin word for a shallow dish or pan.

From Ottoman Turkish, borrowed from Arabic ra'īs, meaning "head" or "chief."

From Old English iw, going back to a very old Indo-European root for this type of evergreen tree.

From the surname Marx plus the suffix "-ism", meaning "the doctrine of."

From goat plus the diminutive ending -ee, since the beard resembles the tuft of hair on a goat's chin.

From French médiéval, built from Latin medium ("middle") and aevum ("age").

From Middle English wenche, a shortened form of wenchel ("child, young girl"), from Old English wenċel, meaning "child" or "servant."

From bruise + -ing.

From Middle English brayny; equivalent to brain + -y.

From Old English bece, related to the word "book" — early books were sometimes made using beech wood or bark.

From Latin dēmōnstrāre, "to point out or show clearly," from de- plus mōnstrāre, "to show."

From Old French bec, ultimately from a Gaulish Celtic word meaning "pointed stick" or "peg."

From Old English bēan, an ancient Germanic word for the bean plant, related to similar words across many European languages.