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 Middle English thurghfare, literally "a way through" — thorough (through) plus fare (a going, a journey).

From French boulevard, originally meaning a city rampart, from a Germanic word related to "bulwark" — the wide streets were often built where old fortress walls once stood.

From Old English hēahweġ, literally "high way" — a raised, major road built above the surrounding land, distinguished from smaller local tracks.

From Old English pæþ, "track, way," a very old Germanic word for a walking trail.

From Middle French trafique, from Italian traffico ("trade"), from trafficare ("to carry on trade"), of uncertain further origin — possibly from Vulgar Latin or Arabic.

From Old French trailler ("to tow, or track a scent"), ultimately from Latin trahere, "to pull or drag."

From Old English rad, meaning "a ride" or "journey" — the same root that gives us "raid." The everyday meaning of "a paved way for travel" only became common much later.

From Old English strēt, an early borrowing from Latin strata ("paved road"), the past participle of a verb meaning "to spread or pave."

From French chamois, originally the name of a small goat-antelope found in the Alps, whose soft hide was used to make the cloth.

From Spanish huevos, the plural of huevo, meaning "egg."

From Old Norse lauss ("loose, free"), related to the suffix "-less" and to words like "lyse" and "-lysis" in modern English via a very old root meaning "to untie."

From Old English losian, meaning to perish or be lost. Its modern pronunciation was reshaped over time by confusion with the unrelated word "loose."

From Old English swan, from Proto-Germanic *swanaz, literally "the singing bird."

From the Ojibwe word odaawaa, meaning "trader," tracing back to a Proto-Algonquian root for trading.

From Old English hēla, related to "hock." The "bad guy in wrestling" and "contemptible person" senses are much more recent American slang, likely from the idea of someone who is "low," like the bottom part of the foot.

From Old English gōs, an ancient word going back through Germanic languages to a Proto-Indo-European root also found in Latin ānser and Sanskrit haṃsá — essentially the same word for "goose" across a huge family of languages.

Traditionally linked to Old English for "holy hair," from a local legend about a martyred woman's hair hung in a tree — though the more likely source is an Old English phrase meaning "grassy corner." The Canadian city was named after an English earl.

From Mohawk tkaronto (“where trees stand in water”), originally referring to the strait between Lake Simcoe and Lake Couchiching. Compare karón꞉ta (“tree”) from Proto-North Iroquoian *-ɹõt-.

From the Western Cree "wi-nipe-k," meaning "murky water."

From Middle English Adelmetone, from Old English Ēadhelm + tūn (“town”). The Canadian city was named after the area of London.

Named after the 2nd Viscount Melbourne, whose title comes from a town in Derbyshire, England, itself from Old English words for "mill" and "stream."

From Old High German Adalheid, from adal ("noble") + heit ("nature, character"); a doublet of Alice.

From Pictish *ᚚᚓᚏᚈ (pert) meaning “wood, copse, thicket”, related to Welsh perth and perhaps Proto-Celtic *kʷerxtā (from Proto-Indo-European *pérkʷus (“oak”).

The city and river are named after Sir Thomas Brisbane, governor of New South Wales from 1821 to 1825.