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 Spanish platina, "little silver," because the metal was originally found as an unwanted impurity in gold and seemed like an inferior form of silver.

Named from Latin iris ("rainbow"), because many of its salts and compounds show a striking range of colours.

Borrowed from Swedish tungsten, literally "heavy stone" (tung, "heavy" + sten, "stone").

Coined in 1808 by the chemist Humphry Davy, from "baryta" (an older name for barium oxide) plus the chemical suffix "-ium."

From Ancient Greek xénos, "strange, foreign," plus the "-on" ending used for noble gases — so named because it is rare and unreactive.

Ancient Greek · 1814

From French iode, from Ancient Greek ioeidēs, "violet-coloured," describing the purple vapour the element gives off when heated. Named by the chemist Humphry Davy in 1814.

The metal was named in 1803 after the asteroid Pallas, which itself was named for Pallas Athena. The older "safeguard" sense comes from the Palladium, a sacred statue of Athena believed to protect the city of Troy.

From Ancient Greek κρυπτός (kruptós), meaning "hidden," plus the "-on" ending used for naming noble gases.

From Greek arsenikon ("yellow orpiment"), itself borrowed from an older Middle Eastern word for a golden mineral — later linked by folk-etymology to Greek arsenikos, "male" or "potent."

From German Zink, related to Zinke ("point, prong") — the metal was apparently named for the pointed, spiky shape its crystals form when it solidifies.

From German Kobalt, itself linked to Kobold ("goblin") — miners blamed mischievous spirits for cobalt ore, which looked like silver but poisoned them with arsenic fumes when smelted.

Traces back through French and Italian to Latin magnesia, from the Greek region of Magnesia, whose name also gave us "magnet" and "magnesium."

From New Latin chromium, from French chrome, from Greek khrôma (\"colour\"), named for the striking colours of its various compounds.

A modern Latin coinage, named after the Titans of Greek mythology to suggest strength.

Coined in 1808 by the chemist Humphry Davy from Latin calx, "lime," since the element occurs naturally in limestone.

From Greek argos, "idle, lazy," chosen because the gas barely reacts with anything else.

Coined in 1810 by chemist Humphry Davy from Greek khlōros ("pale green") plus the chemical ending -ine.

From Middle English sulphur, via Anglo-Norman, ultimately from Latin sulpur/sulfur of uncertain origin. It displaced the native Old English word swefl.

Borrowed from Latin phosphorus, from Greek phosphoros, "bearer of light" — originally a name for the morning star, the planet Venus seen before sunrise.

From New Latin magnesium, based on Greek Magnēsía, a region in Thessaly; coined by the chemist Humphry Davy, who first isolated it.

From Greek neon, meaning "new" — named because it was a newly discovered element when identified in 1898.

From Greek lithos ("stone"), plus the chemical suffix -ium — named because it was first found in mineral (stone) form, unlike other alkali metals discovered in plant ash.

From Middle French densité, from Latin densitas, built on dense plus -ity.

Probably from "fag end," meaning a leftover scrap or remnant.