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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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Borrowed from Arabic سَاجِد (sājid, "one who prostrates in prayer").

Transliteration of Hindi ऋषभ (ŕṣabh).

Borrowed from German Marburg, from an unknown term + German Burg.

From Māori and Samoan "Toi," used across several Polynesian languages.

From Hindi दीपा (dīpā), ultimately from Sanskrit दीपा (dīpā), related to "lamp" or "light."

Borrowed from Japanese Ise (伊勢).

From Sanskrit शान्ति (śānti), "calmness, peace, tranquility," from a root meaning to be calm or satisfied.

A transliteration of the Russian surname Рахма́нинов (Raxmáninov).

From Sanskrit mahesa, a title of the god Shiva.

Variant of Devereaux.

From Cantonese 石 (sek), meaning "stone."

Variant of Becks.

Various origins: * A variant of German Veit. * Borrowed from Czech or Polish Fait, both from the German surname. * Perhaps from an obsolete English personal name derived from Anglo-Norman afaitie (“accomplished, skillful”).

Borrowed from French Revoir, variant of Rivoire.

From German Budweiser, "of Budweis," the Bohemian town famous for its brewing tradition long before the American brand adopted the name.

Borrowed from German Heineken.

* As a German surname, borrowed from German Lessing, a variant of Lessig. * As a Lower Sorbian surname, from lesník (“forester”). Compare Lesnik.

Literally means "one from Oppenheim," a town in Germany, formed the way many German surnames were built from place names.

Borrowed from German Sprang.

Borrowed from Russian Чернов (Černov), related to čorny ("black").

Borrowed from Italian and Spanish Dato. This surname is mostly found in the Philippines.

Variant of McVey.

Borrowed from Japanese 奥田 (Okuda).

From the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin 孝義 /孝义 (Xiàoyì).