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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 directly from the German word klein, meaning "small," used as a surname.

Latinization of the Old French equivalent of the English name Rolf.

Borrowed from Japanese.

From Latin dives (“rich man”).

Borrowed from Japanese てつお (Tetsuo).

Borrowed from Japanese ちひろ (Chihiro).

An English surname originally taken from a place name meaning "pleasant clearing" or "boundary clearing" in Old English.

From Tlingit Tʼaaḵu.

From Arabic طَرَف الغَار (ṭaraf al-ḡār, literally “cape of laurel”). The place in Australia is named for the battle.

Borrowed from Japanese だいすけ (Daisuke).

Borrowed from Japanese しんぺい (Shinpei).

From Japanese, written with any of several characters meaning "excel," "win," or "wise."

Borrowed from Japanese しのぶ (Shinobu).

Borrowed from Japanese さとみ (Satomi).

From the name of the Umamusume: Pretty Derby franchise, from Japanese 馬 (uma, “a horse”) + 娘 (musume, “a girl”).

The surname comes from the Japanese characters 加藤 (Katō).

From the character Figaro, the clever barber in Beaumarchais’s plays and Rossini’s opera The Barber of Seville.

From Korean 인천(仁川) (Incheon).

Formed from Paul with the affectionate "-y" ending used in nicknames.

From John + -o.

From Mark + -ie.

Borrowed from Japanese かおる (Kaoru).

Borrowed from Japanese かずみ (Kazumi).