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 French hélicoptère, built from Greek helix ("spiral") and pteron ("wing").

From Old French vermeillon, from vermeil, ultimately from Latin vermiculus ("little worm") — the color was originally made from crushed scale insects used for red dye.

From Old French esclate, related to esclater ("to break, shatter"), ultimately from a Germanic root meaning "to split."

Middle English · 1920

Originally the name of the small duck, from Middle English tele; the colour sense — describing the blue-green patch on the bird's head and wings — only appeared in the 1920s.

From Middle English how + ever — literally "how ever," which hardened over time into a single contrast word.

From Italian fascismo, coined from fascio ("bundle" or "group"), referencing the Roman fasces — a bundle of rods symbolising authority — adopted as an emblem by Mussolini's movement.

From Old French retret, ultimately from Latin retrahere, "to draw back" — a doublet of "retract."

From Italian terra di Siena ("earth of Siena"), named after the Italian city of Siena, historically a major source of the clay pigment.

From Old English sælig, "lucky, blessed" — the meaning drifted over centuries from "blessed" to "innocent" to "simple" and finally to today's "foolish," a similar journey to the word "daft."

From Old English syll, "threshold, foundation," related to Old Norse svill and, more distantly, to Latin silva, "forest."

From Old French pierre turquoise, "Turkish stone" — the gem reached Europe via Turkish traders even though it was actually mined in Persia.

From Old French chaine, from Latin catena ("chain") — the same root that gives us "catenary" and "concatenate."

A compound of "chain" and "saw," describing its rotating chain of cutting teeth.

From Old French aloi, related to Latin alligare, "to bind together" — the same root as "ally".

Formed from "chair" plus "person," coined as a neutral alternative to "chairman" and "chairwoman."

From Old English tin, going back to a shared Germanic word for the metal.

From Old English rose, reinforced by Old French rose, both ultimately from Latin rosa — a word that may trace back through Greek to a very old Persian root for "flower."

From Old French saumon, from Latin salmo. The silent "l" was added later by scholars trying to make the spelling look more Latin, the same trend that gave us the silent letters in "debt" and "receipt."

Via French from Arabic līlak, ultimately traced back through Persian to a Sanskrit word for "dark blue."

From Old French chaiere, from Latin cathedra ("seat"), from Greek kathedra — the same root behind "cathedral" and "chaise."

From Old English coper, from Late Latin cuprum, itself shortened from Latin aes Cyprium ("metal of Cyprus"), an island long famous for copper mining.

The writing tool sense comes from Latin penna ("feather"), since early pens were cut from quills; the enclosure sense is unrelated, from Old English penn.

From Middle English tortuse, from Medieval Latin tortuca, of uncertain deeper origin; the modern spelling was likely shaped by the similar word "porpoise."

Traced back through Old French safran and Medieval Latin safranum to Arabic za'faran, ultimately from Aramaic.