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 deca- + -logy.

From Latin dēmittō (“send or bring down, let fall”).

From Dicken + -son.

Borrowed from Ancient Greek κῠ́τος (kŭ́tos, “hollow”, “vessel”); compare -cyte.

From deer + field.

From cry + -some.

From German Kreosot in the 1830s, coined in 1832 by German natural philosopher Carl Ludwig, Baron Reichenbach, from Ancient Greek κρέας (kréas, “flesh”) + σωτήρ (sōtḗr, “preserver”) for its use as an antiseptic and meat-preservative. The creosote bush was named after its scent. By surface analysis, containing creo-.

Borrowed from French crampon.

craftswomanship

From craftswoman + -ship, on the pattern of craftsmanship.

From crap + head.

As a surname from French D'Anna (“of Anna”). The given name is more probably a feminine form coined from Dan or Daniel.

From Latin denuntiator. denunciate + -or.

From Middle English creaunce, from Old French creance. See credence.

From de- + figure.

From Middle French dénuder, from Latin dēnūdāre, from dē- + nūdus (“bare”).

Borrowed from Late Latin diaphorēsis, from Ancient Greek δῐᾰφόρησῐς (dĭăphórēsĭs, “evaporation, dissipation, perspiration”); by surface analysis, dia- (“through, across”) + -phoresis (“transmission”); also synchronically held to end in the suffix -esis.

From debt + holder.

Borrowed from Latin deliquium, from Latin delinquere (“to lack, to fail”).

From dextro- + -ose (“right-handed sugar”).

From de- + sublimate.

From cyber- + -punk, coined by American writer and software developer Bruce Bethke as the title of a 1983 short story, and later popularized by Gardner Dozois.

Borrowed from Late Latin dēcrētōrius (“decisive”), from Latin dēcernō (“decide, determine”).

From de- + streamline.

From Dardania + -an.