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 English henn, related to Germanic words for "hen" that ultimately trace to an old root meaning "to sing" — the same root behind the word for a male chicken, "cock".

From Old English witt, meaning mind or understanding, tracing back to an ancient root meaning "to know" — the same root behind "wise" and "wisdom."

From Old French braire ("to cry out"), possibly ultimately related to words for making a loud noise.

From Old English "blǣtan," an imitation of the sound sheep and goats make.

An imitative word copying the sound sheep make, related to similar words in other languages like German bäh.

From basket + ball, since the game was originally played by throwing a ball into peach baskets.

From Latin scāla, "ladder, staircase," from scandere, "to climb" — the same root behind "ascend" and "descend." The fish-skin sense comes from a separate but similarly spelled Germanic word.

From Old French mode, from Latin modus ("measure, manner, rhythm") — the same root behind "moderate," "model," and "modern."

From Old French arche, a feminine form of arc, from Latin arcus, "a bow, arc, or arch".

From "key" (in the sense of a locking piece) and "stone" — the stone that locks an arch together.

Built from tele- ("far off") and -phone ("sound"), modelled on the German word Telephon. The device itself was popularised from 1876 by Alexander Graham Bell.

From sex + -ist, formed after sexism.

From Old French sacrifice, from Latin sacrificium, from sacer ("sacred") plus facere ("to make/do").

The "soft, gentle" sense comes from Latin tener ("soft, delicate") via Old French tendre. The "offer, bid" sense is a separate word from Old French tendre ("to stretch out, offer"), from Latin tendere.

From Old English gandra, related to Proto-Germanic roots for "goose" — the "quick look" sense comes from the image of craning your neck like a goose to see something.

From French tube, from Latin tubus ("pipe"), a relative of tuba ("trumpet") — both probably going back to a very old word for a hollow reed or pipe.

From Latin tubulus ("small tube") plus -ar. The slang sense meaning "awesome" comes from surfing culture, describing the hollow, tube-like curl of a great wave — and became a catchphrase of 1980s surfer and valley-girl slang.

A very old, common personal name; the male-cat sense is shortened from "tomcat."

From Ancient Greek ethnikós (\"of a nation, heathen\"), from éthnos (\"a people or nation\").

From Old English hoppian, "to hop, spring, leap, dance," an old Germanic verb shared with Dutch and German equivalents.

From grass + hopper — literally "one that hops in the grass".

A very old word of uncertain origin, applied over the centuries to lots of round or lumpy things — corn cobs, stocky horses, round loaves, even a male swan.

From French tigresse, formed from "tiger" plus the feminine suffix "-ess."

Probably from Old French poupée ("doll, puppet") — the same root as puppet — since small pet dogs were once seen as living toys.