Etymology — The Origins of English Words

From Middle English absteyner, equivalent to abstain + -er.

From bar + keeper.

From Old French prolixe, from Latin prōlixus (“stretched out; courteous, favorable”). The verb is derived from the adjective.

Unknown; originally a dialectal term from southern England.

Borrowed from Latin cacoēthes, from Ancient Greek κακοήθης (kakoḗthēs, “ill-disposed”) from κακός (kakós, “bad”) + ἦθος (êthos, “disposition, nature”).

PIE word *upó Borrowed from Anglo-Norman suburner, subhorner, and Middle French suborner, subourner (“to induce (someone) to commit a crime (specifically perjury) or wrongdoing”) (modern French suborner (“to suborn; to bribe”)), and from its etymon Latin subōrnāre, the present active infinitive of subōrnō (“to incite, instigate, suborn; to instruct one for a secret purpose; to adorn, dress; to equip, furnish, provide; to make one appear as (something)”), from sub- (prefix meaning ‘under’) + ōrnō (“to equip, furnish, provide; to adorn, decorate, ornament”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂er- (“to put together, fit; to fix; to slot”)). Cognates * Catalan subornar * Italian subornare * Old Occitan subornar, sobornar * Portuguese subornar * Spanish subornar (obsolete), sobornar

From Ancient Greek κοσμογονία (kosmogonía), from κόσμος (kósmos, “world”) + γόνος (gónos, “creation”). By surface analysis, cosmo- + -gony.

First attested in the late 14th century as Middle English abstinent, abstynent, from Old French abstinent, from Latin abstinēns, present participle of abstineō. See abstain.

Inherited from Middle English synwy, synewy, synowy (“tendonous”); equivalent to sinew + -y.

By surface analysis, cloy + -ing.

From French mine (“appearance”) (whence also Danish mine and German Miene), perhaps from Breton min (“face of an animal”), or from Latin minio (“to redden”).

From the earlier form elritch, of uncertain origin. The second element, -ritch, is generally taken to be Old English rīċe (“realm, kingdom”). Some think that the first element, el-, derives from an Old English root meaning “foreign, strange, other” (related to Old English ellende and modern English else); others think that it derives from elf. It was reintroduced into popular literature by the writings of H. P. Lovecraft.

From Middle English canonycal, from Medieval Latin canōnicālis. By surface analysis, canon + -ical.

From Late Latin mendacitas, from Latin mendāx (“deceitful, deceptive, lying”) + -itās (suffix forming nouns indicating a state of being). Mendāx is derived from mentior (“to deceive, lie”) (from mēns, mentis (“mind; intellect; judgment, reasoning”), from Proto-Indo-European *méntis (“thought”)) + -āx (suffix forming adjectives expressing a tendency or inclination), or from Proto-Indo-European *mend- (“to fault”). By surface analysis, Latin mendāc- + -ity.

From French strident, from Latin strīdēns, present active participle of strīdō.

From Middle French pedant, pedante, from Italian pedante (“a teacher, schoolmaster, pedant”), associated with unrelated Italian pedagogo (“teacher, pedagogue”). Compare French pédant.

From Middle French palliatif, from New Latin *palliātīvus, from Medieval Latin palliō (“to cloak”), from Latin pallium (“a cloak”).

From Late Middle English epicene, epicen, epicin, epcyn, episcen, epycen, epycene, epycyn, ypsen (“(grammar) having only one form for masculine and feminine gender, common”), from Late Latin epicoenos, epicoenus (“of a noun: applicable to either males or females”), Latin epicoenon (“noun applicable to either males or females; grammatical gender of such nouns”), from Ancient Greek ἐπίκοινος (epíkoinos, “common to many people, things, etc.; promiscuous, sluttish”) (compare γένος ἐπίκοινον (génos epíkoinon, “common gender”)), from ἐπι- (epi-, prefix meaning ‘on, upon; on top of; all over’) + κοινός (koinós, “common; general, public”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm (“beside, by, near, with”) + *-yós (suffix forming adjectives from noun stems)).

From Middle English repugnance, repugnaunce, from Old French repugnance, repugnaunce (French répugnance) and its etymon Latin repugnantia. Doublet of repugnancy.

From Middle English aureole, from Old French aureole, from Medieval Latin aureola (corona) (“golden (crown)”). Doublet of oriole.

From Middle English surenes; equivalent to sure + -ness.

From Late Latin regurgitātus, past participle of regurgitāre, combined form of re- (“back”) + gurgitāre (“to engulf, flood”), from gurges (“whirlpool, gulf, sea, abyss”).

The verb is probably borrowed from Italian scappare (“to run away, escape, flee”), from Vulgar Latin *excappāre (“to escape”), from Latin ex- (prefix meaning ‘away; out’) + cappa (“(Late Latin) cape, cloak (usually with a hood); (Medieval Latin) cap; headwear”) (further etymology uncertain, probably ultimately from caput (“head”), from dialectal Proto-Indo-European *káput (“head”)) + -āre (the present active infinitive of -ō (suffix forming regular first-conjugation verbs)). Around World War I (1914–1918), the English word was influenced by the Cockney rhyming slang term Scapa Flow (“to go”). Doublet of escape and scape. The noun is derived from the verb.

From Middle English transfiguracioun, from Old French transfiguracion, Anglo-Norman transfiguraciun, and Latin transfigūrātio.