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

A compound of 'socio-', from Latin 'socius' meaning 'companion', and 'economic', from Greek 'oikonomia', household management.

From 'social', from Latin 'socialis' meaning 'of companionship', plus 'justice', from Latin 'iustitia'.

social Darwinism

From the name of the naturalist Charles Darwin, applied to social and political theory. The label was popularised largely by the movement's critics.

From 'sneaky' plus 'link', British and Caribbean slang for meeting up with or dating someone ('linking').

From 'sneak', to move or act secretly, plus 'peek', a quick look. The pairing is reinforced by the rhyme.

An initialism; the expansion depends on context.

An initialism; the expansion depends on context.

From 'skinny' in the sense of 'relating to bare skin' plus 'dip', an old word for a quick swim.

A shortening of 'simpleton'. The older 'foolish person' sense is much older than the internet sense that now dominates.

From Latin 'simile', the neuter of 'similis' meaning 'like, similar'.

From the proverb 'every cloud has a silver lining', picturing sunlight edging a dark cloud with bright light.

Spanish for 'hired killer', from Latin sicarius 'assassin, dagger-man', from sica 'a curved dagger'.

Deverbal from shout out.

An initialism used on social media; the expansion varies with the platform.

From Latin sextans 'a sixth part', because the instrument's graduated arc spans a sixth of a circle, that is sixty degrees.

From serf, borrowed from French serf, from Latin servus 'slave', plus the English suffix -dom denoting a condition or state.

Plural of Latin sequela 'that which follows, a consequence', from sequi 'to follow'.

Spanish señorita, the diminutive of señora 'lady, madam', which goes back to Latin senior 'older person'.

From New Latin Semiticus, from Semita, from the Hebrew name Shem, one of Noah's sons, from whom the peoples so called were traditionally said to descend.

From Greek sēmantikos 'significant, having meaning', from sēmainein 'to signify', from sēma 'sign'.

From self plus esteem, which comes through Old French from Latin aestimare 'to value, to appraise'.

From self- + awareness. Also equivalent to self-aware + -ness, though attested earlier.

self-actualization

From self- + actualization. Probably applied in this sense by Abraham Maslow.

An initialism of 'shaking my head', describing the physical gesture of disapproval.