Etymology — The origins of English words

From Latin fusus (“spindle”) + -iform.

The noun is borrowed from French gazettier (archaic), gazetier (“journalist, newspaperman”) + English -eer (suffix forming agent nouns denoting people associated with or engaged in a specified activities). Gazettier, gazetier are derived from gazette (“newspaper”) + -ier (suffix denoting a profession); and gazette from Italian gazzetta, from Venetan gazeta, from gazeta dele novità (literally “a gazeta of news”) (referring to the cost of the newspaper, a gazeta being a Venetian coin of little value, whence English gazet (obsolete)), possibly a diminutive of Latin gaza (“riches, treasure; treasury”), ultimately from Old Median *ganǰam (“treasure; wealth”). The English word is analysable as gazette + -eer. The verb is derived from the noun.

clipping of gelatin + capsule

From Middle English gentilwoman, modelled after gentilman (“gentleman”), equivalent to gentle + -woman.

From gibi- + byte.

From funny + woman.

From gallant + -hood.

From Middle English glim, glimme (“radiance; shining brightness”), of uncertain further origin. Perhaps from Old English gleomu (“splendor”) and/or Old Norse *glim, *glima, both apparently from Proto-Germanic *glimō, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰley- (“to gleam, shimmer, glow”). Compare Norwegian Nynorsk glim, dialectal Old Swedish glim, glimma.

From gob (“lump”) + -y.

From French foliation, from Latin folium (“leaf”).

From Middle English fordriven, from Old English fordrīfan (“to drive, sweep away, drive on, impel, compel, drive away, expel, overtax”), from Proto-West Germanic *fradrīban, from Proto-Germanic *fradrībaną (“to drive away, drive out, expel”), equivalent to for- + drive. Cognate with West Frisian fordriuwe, ferdriuwe (“to expel”), Dutch verdrijven (“to expel”), German Low German verdrieven (“to drive away”), German vertreiben (“to expel, drive out, banish”), Danish fordrive (“to oust, expel”), Swedish fördriva (“to drive away, drive out, banish”).

From Middle English fox-glove, foxes glove, from Old English foxes glōfa (“foxglove”). By surface analysis, fox + glove.

Unknown. Originated in the US in the 1930s; perhaps merely a nonsense word.

Learned borrowing from Latin fistula (“pipe, ulcer, catheter”). Doublet of fester.

Genericized trademark, blend of flesh + flashlight.

From fore- + choice.

From flummox + -ed.

From fop (“vain man, dandy”) + doodle (“(obsolete) mindless person, fool, simpleton”).

From Latin formica (“ant”) + -ary.

Two main origins: * A variant of the Scottish surname Forbes. * An Americanized spelling of German Vorbusch.

From fremd + -ling. Cf. Dutch vreemdeling, German Fremdling, Swedish främling.

From Late Latin fluentia, equivalent to fluent + -cy. Cognate with French fluence.

From flag + -y.

From film + -y. Cognate with Middle Dutch velmich, vilmich (“filmy, membranous”). Doublet of filmic.