Etymology — The Origins of English Words

From checker + board.

From charge + -man.

From clench + poop.

Borrowed from French chopine, diminutive of chope + -ine. Doublet of chopin.

The noun is borrowed from Middle French cochenille (modern French cochenille), from Italian cocciniglia or Spanish cochinilla; further etymology uncertain, possibly from Latin coccineus, coccinus (“scarlet-dyed; scarlet in colour”) (whence Italian coccineo (“scarlet in colour”)) + Italian -iglia (suffix forming collective nouns), Spanish -illa (“diminutive suffix”). Coccinus is derived from Ancient Greek κόκκῐνος (kókkĭnos, “scarlet; (figurative) blushing”, adjective), from κόκκος (kókkos, “kermes oak (Quercus coccifera); insect of the genus Kermes living on the oak; scarlet dye made from crushed kermes insects”) (possibly from Pre-Greek) + -ῐνος (-ĭnos, suffix forming adjectives). According to the Oxford English Dictionary, cochineal is not derived from Spanish cochinilla (“pill bug, especially the common pill bug (Armadillidium vulgare)”), a diminutive of cochina (“female pig, sow”) (from the animal’s shape), which coincidentally has the same spelling as cochinilla (“cochineal”). The adjective is derived from the noun.

From Middle English *clart, found in the verb biclarten (“to cover or smear with dirt”). Cognate with Scots clart, clairt (“to besmear”), Scots clarty (“dirty”). Further origin uncertain.

Borrowed from French casque. Doublet of casco and cask.

Deverbal from chill out.

From Middle English cherchewardeyn, chirchewardeyn, churchewardeyn, schyrsche wordeyn; equivalent to church + warden.

Variant spelling of Carmichael.

From New Latin Cestoda, from cestus (“girdle, belt”), from Ancient Greek κεστός (kestós, “of Aphrodite’s charmed girdle”).

From climb + down.

From the chequer tree, which has fruits of a similar appearance.

Chelonia + -an

From Middle French carousser (“to quaff, drink, swill”), from German gar aus (literally “all out, quite out”), from gar austrinken (“to drink up entirely, guzzle”). Compare German Garaus.

From Middle English childly, childlich, childli, from Old English ċildlīċ (“childly, childlish”), equivalent to child + -ly.

See circus.

From chuckle + -some.

From French carnass(ier) (“carnivorous”) + -ial, from Occitan carnassa, from carn + -assa (feminine form of Occitan -às), from Latin carn- + -āceus.

From Spanish chaparral, from chaparro (“evergreen oak”) + -al, from Basque txaparro, from txapar, from sapar.

From Middle English catacombe, from Old English catacumbe, catacumbas pl, from Late Latin catacumbae pl, name of the underground cemetery of St. Sebastian in Rome, of unclear origin. Perhaps a dissimilation (influenced by *cumbō (“to lie, recline”)) of Late Latin cata tumbās (literally “among the tombs”) (from Ancient Greek κατά (katá, “under”) and τύμβος (túmbos, “tomb”)). Some sources suggest Ancient Greek κύμβη (kúmbē, “drinking vessel”) as an alternative etymon, but the semantic link is unclear.

From car + load.

From cocus + wood.

From clunk + -er.