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 busy plus body — literally someone who keeps their "body" busy meddling in others' lives.

From shot + gun; the "front passenger seat" sense comes from the phrase "ride shotgun", referring to the armed guard who once sat beside a stagecoach driver.

A compound of hand and gun, describing a firearm designed for one-handed use.

From Old French inconvenience, from Late Latin inconvenientia ("inconsistency, incongruity").

The calendar sense comes from Hebrew Av, ultimately traced back to an Akkadian month name.

Borrowed from Russian "че" (če).

From French aristocratique, from Greek aristokratikos.

From French aristocrate, from aristocratie, ultimately from Greek aristokratia.

From Latin aptus, "suitable, fitting."

Borrowed directly from French à propos, literally "to the purpose."

From Latin approximatus, from ad- + proximare, "to come near," from proximus, "nearest."

From Old French terme, from Latin terminus, "a boundary or limit."

From Latin pro, meaning "on behalf of" or "in favor of."

A compound of fuck and wit.

From Old French carnage, ultimately from Latin caro/carnis, meaning "flesh" — the same root found in "carnivore" and "incarnate."

Borrowed from Japanese tsunami, literally "harbour wave," from tsu ("harbour") and nami ("wave").

Traced back through Latin and Greek to Biblical Hebrew halleluyah, literally "praise the Lord" — from hallelu ("praise") and Yah, a short form of the divine name.

From Old French aprover, from Latin approbare, from ad- + probare, "to test, prove good" — the same root as probe and probable.

From Old French buef ("ox"), from Latin bovem, the same root that gives us "bovine." The slang sense meaning "a grudge" is American, first recorded as a verb ("to complain") in the late 1800s.

From Old English ears-þyrel, literally "arse-hole" — a direct compound of arse and hole.

From Middle English being, formed from the verb "be" plus the noun-forming suffix "-ing."

Borrowed from Italian pasta, "dough" or "paste," from Late Latin pasta, ultimately from Greek paste, "barley porridge."

A straightforward compound of by- + pass — literally a route that "passes by" the main one.

Borrowed from Italian palazzo, from the same Latin root as "palace," ultimately from the Palatine Hill in Rome.