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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From Old English wealh (“foreigner, Briton, Welshman”) + cot (“cottage”); compare the doublet Walcot.

From the Montaukett tribal name, roughly meaning "the fort country."

From Ancient Greek Ῥαμέσσης (Rhaméssēs), from Egyptian rꜥ-ms-sw.

From Middle English lymail, via Anglo-Norman limaille, ultimately from Latin limare ("to file"), the same root as "file."

Unadapted borrowing from Latin lōtus, from Ancient Greek λωτός (lōtós). Doublet of lote. First attested in the 1540s. Ultimately from Hebrew לוֹט (lōṭ, “myrrh”, literally “covering, envelope”).

Variant of Cheri.

From Swahili Mombasa.

From French Verne.

From a resemblance between the thin spokes of old horse-drawn open carriages and a spider's legs, later applied to open-topped cars.

Named after Shetland, the Scottish island group where the sheep breed originates.

From a clipping of amigurumi, itself from Japanese 編み包み (amigurumi).

From Japanese 宮 (miya), meaning "shrine" or "palace."

A shortened, informal form of "Trinidadian."

Borrowed from Japanese 芝 (Shiba).

Borrowed from Hindi "paan."

A back-formation from the adjective "dowdy."

Borrowed from Korean 언니 (eonni), meaning an older sister of a woman.

Russian · 1962

The slang sense comes from Russian golová ("head"), popularized through the invented Nadsat slang in Anthony Burgess's 1962 novel "A Clockwork Orange," with its spelling influenced by the name Gulliver.

From Costa Ricans' habit of adding the diminutive ending "-tico" to words far more than other Spanish speakers do (so "un poquito" becomes "un poquitico") — the nickname stuck to the people themselves.

From Japanese tsurugi, meaning "sword," specifically a straight double-edged blade.

From Gaelic "Mac a' Phearsain," meaning "son of the parson."

A straightforward compound of moon and base.

Borrowed from Japanese 天野 (Amano).

From Italian Donatello.