Etymology — The origins of English words

desire

Latin

From Old French desirer, from Latin desiderare, "to long for, to feel the want of" — possibly tied to sidus ("star"), as in longing for something once seen in the stars.

dependent

Middle French

From Middle French dependant, the present participle of dependre ("to depend").

delicate

Middle English

From Middle English delicat, from Latin dēlicātus (“giving pleasure, delightful, soft, luxurious, delicate, (in Medieval Latin also) fine, slender”), from dēlicia + -ātus (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), usually in plural dēliciae (“pleasure, delight, luxury”), from dēliciō (“to allure, entice”), from dē- (“away”) + laciō (“to lure, to deceive”), from Proto-Italic *lakjō (“to draw, pull”), of unknown ultimate origin. Compare delight, delicious and Spanish delgado (“thin, skinny”). The noun is from a substantivization of the adjective (see -ate).

decision

Latin

From Latin decisio, "a cutting off, a settling," from decidere, "to decide."

hark

Old English

From Old English root related to "hear," with an added intensive ending, making it essentially an old word for "listen closely."

compel

Latin

From Latin compellere, from com- ("together") plus pellere ("to drive"), the same root as "propel" and "expel."

compelling

Origin

From compel plus the adjective ending -ing.

reveal

Latin

From Latin revelare, "to uncover" — from re- ("back") + velare ("to cover"), from velum ("veil").

revelation

Latin

From Latin revelatio, "disclosure," from revelare, "to uncover" — re- ("back") + velare ("to cover").

visionary

Origin

From vision plus the adjective-forming suffix -ary.

qualify

Middle French

Borrowed from Middle French qualifier, built from "quality" plus the verb-forming suffix "-fy."

lunacy

Latin

From lunatic + the noun-forming suffix -cy; ultimately from Latin luna ("moon"), reflecting the old belief that madness waxed and waned with the moon.

library

Latin

From Old French librairie, from Latin librarium, "bookcase," from liber, "book" (originally the inner bark of a tree, used as an early writing surface). Interestingly, the Romance-language descendants (French librairie, Italian libreria) came to mean "bookshop" instead — only English kept the "collection you borrow from" sense.

fetish

Latin

From French fétiche, from Portuguese feitiço ("charm, sorcery"), ultimately from Latin factīcius ("artificial") — the same root as factitious.

rogue

Latin

Origin disputed — possibly from an older English word for a wandering beggar who posed as a poor scholar, itself perhaps from Latin rogare ("to ask, beg"); or from a French word meaning "arrogant, haughty".

sinister

Latin

From Latin sinister, meaning "left" — the left side was historically associated with bad luck and ill omen.

allegory

Ancient Greek

From Ancient Greek allegoria, "speaking in a different way" — combining allos ("other") with a verb meaning "to speak publicly," so literally "saying one thing while meaning another."

tabernacle

Latin

From Latin tabernaculum, "tent, booth," a diminutive of taberna, "hut, shed."

sleepy

Old English

From Old English *slǣpiġ, built from "sleep" plus the adjective-forming suffix "-y."

study

Latin

From Old French estudier, ultimately from Latin studium, meaning "eagerness" or "application to learning."

comer

Middle English

From Middle English comere, formed from come plus the agent suffix -er.

address

Latin

From Old French adrecier, "to straighten, to direct," from Latin dirigere, "to guide" — the same root that gives us "direct."

flashlight

Origin

From flash + light.

globe

Latin

From Old French globe, from Latin globus, meaning a round mass or ball.