Etymology — The Origins of English Words

PIE word *h₂éd Borrowed from French appris, apprise, the past participle form of apprendre (“to learn; to teach”), from Middle French apprendre, aprendre (“to learn”), from Old French aprendre, aprandre (“to learn; to educate, teach”), from Latin apprēndere, a variant of apprehendere, adprehendere, the present active infinitives of apprehendō, adprehendō (“to lay hold upon, grab, grasp, seize, take; to apprehend, arrest; to grasp with the mind, comprehend, understand; (Medieval Latin) to learn; to inform; to teach”), from ad- (prefix meaning ‘to; towards’) + prehendō (“to lay hold of, grab, grasp, seize, take; (figuratively, rare) of the mind: to apprehend, comprehend, grasp, seize”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʰed- (“to find; to hold; to seize, take”)). Doublet of apprehend.

Partly from French revivifier and partly from Latin revīvificō, corresponding to re- + vivify.

From mid + point.

Borrowed from Latin affixus, perfect passive participle of affigere (from ad- + figere). By surface analysis, af- + fix.

Borrowed from Latin candēla (“candle”). Doublet of candle and chandelle.

Perhaps from Polari, 1960s. Further etymology unknown; perhaps a conscious corruption of either fanny or eff (off) (see naff off).

Uncertain. Perhaps from Angloromani nok (“nose”), from Romani nakh, from Sauraseni Prakrit 𑀡𑀓𑁆𑀓 (ṇakka), ultimately a doublet of nose.

Borrowed from Middle French illusorie (modern French illusoire), derived from Latin illūsōrius (“mocking, ironical”).

From heaven + -like.

From earlier gyr, probably from Dutch gieren (“to roar with laughter, laugh loudly”) (related to German gieren (“to gape, snap”)); or from Dutch gekscheren (“to jeer”, literally “to shear the fool”), from gek (“a fool”) (see geck) + scheren (“to shear”) (see shear (verb)). The OED states no verifiable connection to English cheer.

From Middle English bewicchen, bewycchen, biwicchen, equivalent to be- + witch.

From Middle French quelque chose (“something”).

From Late Latin catēgoricus + -al. By surface analysis, category + -ical.

From Middle French intelligible, from Old French, from Latin intelligibilis.

From here + against.

First attested in 1880; ad- (“toward”) + culture + -ation (“a process”); equivalent to acculturate + -ion

From in- + equity. Piecewise doublet of iniquity.

Borrowed from Latin miscellānea, neuter plural of miscellāneus, from miscellus (“mixed”), from misceō (“to mix”).

From Middle English envolupen, from Old French anveloper, envoluper (modern French envelopper), from en- + voloper, vloper (“to wrap, wrap up”) (compare Italian -viluppare; Old Italian alternative form goluppare (“to wrap”)) from Vulgar Latin *vuloppare (“to wrap”), from Proto-Germanic *wlappaną, *wrappaną (“to wrap, roll up, turn, wind”), from Proto-Indo-European *werb- (“to turn, bend”) http://www.wordnik.com/words/envelop. Akin to Middle English wlappen (“to wrap, fold”) (Modern English lap (“to wrap, involve, fold”)), Middle English wrappen (“to wrap”), Middle Dutch lappen (“to wrap up, embrace”), Danish dialectal vravle (“to wind, twist”), Middle Low German wrempen (“to wrinkle, distort”), Old English wearp (“warp”). Doublet of enwrap.

Borrowed from Irish bróg (“boot, shoe”), from Old Irish bróc (“shoe, greave, legging, hose, breeches”), likely from Old Norse brók (“breeches”), from Proto-Germanic *brōks (“breeches”). The "accent" sense may instead be derived from Irish barróg (“a hold (on the tongue)”).

From Middle English glisnen, glistnen, from Old English glisnian, itself from Proto-West Germanic *glisnōn, while ultimately deriving from Proto-Germanic *glisnōną.

From 13th century Middle English crag, from Middle Irish crec, a contracted form of Middle Irish carrac (compare Irish creig, Scottish Gaelic creag), possibly ultimately from the late Proto-Indo-European/substrate *kar (“stone, hard”); see also Old Armenian քար (kʻar, “stone”), Sanskrit खर (khara, “hard, solid”), Welsh carreg (“stone”).

From Middle English awakenen or awaknen, from Old English awæcnan or awæcnian, from a- plus wæcnan or wæcnian.

From Old French enticement.