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 Old English "weorold," originally meaning something like "age of man" — combining an old word for "man" with a word for "age."

From "globe" plus the adjective ending "-al," on the model of French global.

Formed from the verb "meet" plus the suffix "-ing," going back to Old English mēting.

From Old English foda, going back to a very old Germanic root shared with "fodder" and "foster."

From Latin mercātus ("trade, market"), from mercor ("to trade, buy"), the same root behind "merchant" and "commerce."

From Old English sendan, "to cause to go," from a Germanic root shared with Dutch zenden and German senden.

From Spanish mexicano, ultimately from Nahuatl mēxihcatl ("a Mexica person").

From Middle English morwenynge, built from morwen ("morrow") plus the -ing ending.

From Old English weall, borrowed from Latin vallum, meaning a rampart or fortification.

From Northern Middle English big or bigge, "powerful, strong," possibly from a dialect of Old Norse, ultimately traced to a Germanic root meaning "to swell" — the same root behind words like "bug" and "bugbear."

From Old French religion, from Latin religio, "reverence for the sacred, conscientiousness" — possibly linked to religare, "to bind," though this connection is debated.

From Old English husbonda, a compound of hus ("house") and a form of the Old Norse word for a resident or master — originally meaning "master of the house," long before it narrowed to mean specifically a married man.

From Modern Latin Mammalia, coined in 1758 by Linnaeus, from Latin mamma ("breast").

From Latin grātuītus ("free, unearned"), from grātia ("favor"), from grātus ("pleasing").

From Old French fruit, "produce," from Latin fructus, "enjoyment, produce, profit" — related to fruor, "to enjoy the benefit of."

From Old French policie, from Latin politia, "citizenship, government." A doublet of "police" and "polity."

From Old English "slāw," meaning lazy or sluggish, from a Germanic root also linked to dullness and weariness.

From Latin consensus, "agreement," from consentire, "to feel together" — the same root as consent.

From Old English open, going back to a very old Germanic root meaning "up from under" — related to the English word "up."

From Latin urbānus, "of a city," from urbs, "city" — the same root that gives us "suburb" and "urbane."

Formed from "economic" plus the suffix "-s" used for fields of study, following the same pattern as "physics" or "politics."

From Old English æppel, from Proto-Germanic *aplaz, going back to a very old Indo-European root for "apple" or fruit in general.

From Latin taxare ("to assess, estimate"), via Old French taxe — a doublet of the word "task."

From Latin fiscus ("treasury, purse"), via Middle French fiscal.