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.

Browse etymology by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Recently added

From frictionless + -ly.

From free + mason.

From finger + post.

Late 16th century. Earliest occurrence as finical, probably coined from fine + -ical. Finicking is recorded from the mid-17th century.

From foot + holder.

Borrowed from Hindustani फ़िरंगी (firaṅgī) / فرنگی (firangī), from Classical Persian فرنگی (farangī), from Old French franc. Doublet of franc.

From foot + stall. Compare pedestal.

From fluid + -ness.

From flap (“to toss sharply”) + jack (“generic object”). So called from the process of baking it by flipping and catching it in the griddle when done on one side.

From feminine + -ness.

From fold + away.

From festival + goer.

Borrowed from Italian fortissimo.

From Middle English foresayen, foreseyen, foreseggen (found only in past participle foresaid), from Old English foreseċġan (“to foresay, foretell, predict, announce, mention beforehand”), equivalent to fore- + say. Cognate with Dutch voorzeggen (“to foretell, presage”), Old Danish foresige, Swedish föresäga, förutsäga (“to predict”).

Clipping of feminine.

From flank + -er. The verb is from the noun (sense 3).

From Middle English forfaren, from Old English forfaran (“to pass away, perish, lose, destroy, ruin, cause to perish, intercept, obstruct”), from Proto-Germanic *frafaraną, equivalent to for- + fare. Cognate with Scots forfar (“to go amiss, decay, perish”), Old Frisian forfara (“to die”), German verfahren (“to use up, spend, lose one's way”), Old Danish forfare (“to perish”).

Borrowed from German Firn, from Alemannic German firn (“last year's”), from Old High German firni (“old”), from Proto-West Germanic [Term?], from Proto-Germanic *firnijaz, *fernaz (“foregoing, previous”), from Proto-Indo-European *per- (“forth, forward, across, through”); cognate with Old English fyrn (“former”), Old Norse forn (“old”), and Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌽𐌴𐌹𐍃 (fairneis, “old”).

From four + pence.

From flavour + -er.

From freed + woman.

From Middle English forthy, from Old English forþȳ, for þȳ þe, forþon (“because, since”), from for + þȳ, þon (“by that, therefore”), instrumental case of þæt (“that”); Cognate with Yola farthoo (“why”), Old Norse fyrir því (at) (Danish & Norwegian fordi (“because”), Swedish för att). More at for, the, that.

From finger + breadth. Compare Middle English fynger brede, fyngerbrede, fyngyrbrede.

From fret (verb) + -work.