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 Arabic bilad as-sudan, "land of the black people."

From the Rwanda-Rundi phrase "u Rwanda," ultimately linked to a verb meaning "to expand."

From Romanian român ("Romanian"), itself from Latin romanus ("Roman"), plus the place-name suffix -ia.

An English rendering of the Arabic name Qaṭar.

From Guarani Paraguai, thought to combine paragua ("feather crown") with i ("river").

From Latin Portus Cale, the old name for the area around modern Vila Nova de Gaia, combining "port" with a name of disputed origin.

Borrowed from Spanish Perú, possibly from the personal name Birú, or from the Quechua pelu (“river”).

Named after Panama, the Central American country, because the hats became widely known internationally after being sold to workers building the Panama Canal — even though they are traditionally made in Ecuador.

Borrowed from Arabic عُمَان (ʕumān).

Borrowed from the Nepali name Nepāl.

From Old French faiture, ultimately from Latin facere ("to make, do") — a doublet of "facture".

From Old French estandart, originally meaning a rallying flag or gathering place in battle, later merging with an English word for "flag-bearer" — its "usual/typical" sense developed from the idea of an official flag marking an accepted measure.

From Old English Frencisc, meaning "Frankish," ultimately from the name of the Franks, the Germanic people who gave their name to France.

From French propriétaire, from Latin proprietarius, related to proprietas ("property, ownership").

From Old English lufu, from a very old root shared across most European languages.

From Anglo-Norman "translacioun," ultimately from Latin "translatio," from "transferre."

From medieval solmization systems, taken from the first syllable of Latin mīra ("wonders") in an old hymn used to teach the musical scale.

From Portuguese Brasil. Doublet of Brazil.

From Spanish Nicaragua, blending the name of the local chief Nicarao with the Spanish word agua ("water"), a nod to the country's large lakes.

Coined in 1897 by the British journalist Flora Shaw, who combined "Niger" (the river running through the region) with the suffix "-ia," used for naming countries.

The plant name is unrelated to the country; the crop's scientific epithet traces to its dark seed coat. The country name Niger has a disputed origin, often linked by folk etymology to the Latin word for "black," though older theories trace it through Tuareg and Berber phrases meaning something like "river of rivers."

From "Namib" (the desert, from Khoekhoe namib) plus the country suffix "-ia."

From Portuguese Moçambique, derived from the name of a local sultan, Mussa Bin Bique, whose island became the namesake of the whole country.

Said to come from a Chichewa word for "flames," describing the glow of sunrise over Lake Malawi; the name was chosen by Hastings Banda in 1964.