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.

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Borrowed from French Lafitte.

Habitational surname from Cornish Kytto.

From Hindi शिंदे (śinde).

Borrowed from Hindi svami.

Borrowed from Sanskrit shri, meaning splendour or sacred fortune, and used across many South Asian languages as a mark of respect.

Anglicized spelling of German Niering.

Borrowed from Italian Di Caprio.

Anglicized spelling of Irish Mac Murchadha (“son of Murchadh”), a personal name composed of the elements muir (“sea”) + cath (“battle”).

Compare Mackie, McKay.

Compare Mackey, McKay.

An initialism of "kill myself," modelled on the earlier slang term "KYS" ("kill yourself").

Variant of Wemyss.

Formed from "cross-" plus "rail."

Abbreviation of Vizagpatnam, former name of Visakhapatnam.

Anglicized form of Northern Irish and Scottish Gaelic Mac Cuairt or Mac Cuarta, meaning "son of a journey," from mac + cuairt. Compare McMurtry.

Initialism of Russian Sluzhba Vneshney Razvedki, "Foreign Intelligence Service."

From French calibre, from Italian calibro, of uncertain ultimate origin, possibly linked to Arabic qālib ("mold").

From Arabic bismi llāh, "in the name of God" — the opening words of the Islamic basmala formula recited before many daily actions.

From the Hebrew name Yuval.

Borrowed from Hindustani (Hindi नेहरू (nehrū) / Urdu نہرو (nehrū)).

Borrowed from Italian Pacino.

Named after Vincenzo Lancia, founder of the Italian car company.

From the Mandarin Chinese name for this people, via its standard romanization.

From Dutch Halen.