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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Name of early saints, Latin Iūstīnus, from Iūstus + -īnus, from iūstus (“just”).

Named after Romney Marsh in Kent, the low-lying marshland where the breed was developed.

Borrowed from a Polynesian language, tracing back to a reconstructed Proto-Polynesian word for a spirit or supernatural being.

Traced to Old French roots meaning "divine" combined with a word for an evergreen tree, later applied loosely to tortoises.

From Middle English acker ("field") + man; originally denoted a farmer who did not own the fields he worked.

Named after the celebrated 19th-century German soprano Henriette Sontag, after whom the garment style became fashionable.

From Japanese Miura, meaning "three coves."

From French Suzette, a diminutive of Suzanne with the affectionate ending "-ette."

Borrowed from Tibetan bon.

Borrowed from Tamil முருகன் (murukaṉ).

From Hebrew מוֹסָד (mosád), literally "institute".

From Japanese 中野 (Nakano).

From Sanskrit गोदावरी (godāvarī).

The spelling was probably influenced by Columbo (an old spelling of Colombo), under the assumption that the plant came from there.

From Persian میرزا (mirzâ).

From hill + man.

Named after Poe's law, an internet adage (itself named after a 2005 online commenter, not the author Edgar Allan Poe) stating that without clear markers, extreme satire is indistinguishable from sincere extremism.

From Greek Πέτρος (Pétros), meaning "rock" or "stone".

From Old French latimier ("interpreter"), ultimately from Latin lingua Latina ("the Latin language").

Borrowed from German Georgi.

From Latin tophus, tofus (“tufa, or tuff”). Doublet of tophus, tufa, and tuff.

20th-century variant spelling of Cindy.

From glen ("narrow valley") and dale ("valley").

A variant of "linsey-woolsey," the traditional name for this wool-and-linen blend fabric.