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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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From Yiddish גאָרפֿינקל (gorfinkl, “carbuncle”).

From Korean hyeondae ("modern times"), named after the wider Hyundai business group the automaker was originally part of.

Borrowed from Portuguese Almeida.

Anglicization of Irish Ó Conghalaigh and Ó Conghaile, patronyms of Conghalach. Doublet of Conley

From Malay Rumi, ultimately from Persian rumi ("Roman"), reflecting its origin as a Roman/Latin-based script.

A blend of "else" and "if."

From Middle English raf, borrowed from Old French raffer ("to snatch"), of Germanic origin — the same root that gives us "riffraff."

From Old English ford + either hām (“homestead”) or hamm (“promontory”).

Ultimately from the same root as "heath," originally describing people who lived on the wild heath outside Christianized towns.

From Old English āc wudu, a straightforward combination of "oak" and "wood."

Borrowed from French Gilly.

From Latin mel ("honey") and rosa ("rose").

From the surname Eastwood, most famously associated with actor Clint Eastwood, whose tough on-screen persona inspired this informal noun sense.

From the Old English personal name Ēada + -ing ("belonging to") + tūn ("settlement").

Borrowed from Sanskrit आन्ध्र (āndhra).

From Cornish penn (“head”) + ros (“moor, heathland”).

From Old English Ebba (“a personal name”) + hām (“homestead”).

Ultimately from Old French bouton, "button," an occupational surname for a button-maker.

Named after the German capital city Berlin, where the carriage design was invented in the 1600s.

From Old English bean ("bean") and croft ("small enclosed field") — literally "bean field."

From Old English docga, a word of uncertain origin that eventually replaced "hound" as the general term for the animal.

From Middle Dutch and Middle High German hase, from Old High German hase ("hare").

Named after Thomas Baker, originally known as Baker's Field.

From Sanskrit Devakī.