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.

Browse etymology by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Recently added

From Old English gif, going back to a Proto-Germanic word meaning "when" or "if."

From Old English death, from a Proto-Germanic root related to the verb die.

From Old English dead, from a Proto-Germanic root also behind German tot and Dutch dood.

From Old English deorc, a very old Germanic word probably tied to a root meaning "dim" or "dull."

From Latin captura, "a taking," from capio, "to seize" — the same root family as "captive" and "captor."

From Old French eschec mat, ultimately from Persian shah mat, meaning "the king is helpless" or "the king is stunned."

From Old French and Latin logicus, ultimately from Ancient Greek logikós, related to logos ("reason, word").

From Old French dialoge, from Greek dialogos ("conversation"), from dia- ("through, between") + legein ("to speak").

From Old French pan ("pledge for payment"), likely from a Germanic word for "deposit" or "security."

From Old English castel, borrowed from Latin castellum, "small fort" — itself a diminutive of castrum, "fort or camp."

Old English · 1977

From Old English heorte, an ancient Indo-European word for "heart"; the figurative "to love" sense of the verb only dates to the 1977 "I ❤ NY" ad campaign.

Middle English · 1350

From Middle English goddesse, simply god plus the feminine ending -ess, first recorded around 1350.

From Old French plate, ultimately from Greek platys, "broad, flat." The slang sense meaning "foot" comes from Cockney rhyming slang, "plates of meat" for "feet."

From Old English "saep" ("juice, sap"), from a Proto-Germanic root related to taste; the "gullible person" sense comes from "sapskull," literally someone with sap instead of brains.

From the Romani word rrom, "Romani man", likely tracing back to a Sanskrit term for a caste of traveling musicians and performers.

From Old English rima, meaning an edge, border, or coastline.

Comes from "goggle," describing the wide, staring look the eyewear gives the wearer.

From Old English hnitu, a very old Germanic word for a louse egg, tracing back to a Proto-Indo-European root also seen in Ancient Greek konis.

Likely derived from the Welsh word "nain," meaning grandmother.

From Middle English deyerie, built from dey ("dairymaid") plus the suffix -ery, meaning roughly "the dairymaid's place."

From Old French chrestien, from Latin Christianus, from Greek Khristianós ("follower of Christ").

From Old English ramm, "male sheep" — a very old Germanic word, related to similar words in Dutch and German for the same animal.

A blend of "modulator" and "demodulator," describing the two jobs the device performs.

Started as a jab at America Online users, who were notorious in 1990s internet forums for posting low-effort "me too" replies.