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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Named after the city and state of Oaxaca in Mexico, itself from a Nahuatl place name referring to a nearby hill.

Blend of River + Jayne.

From Turkish Laz, ultimately from the Laz people's own name for themselves, ლაზი (lazi).

Borrowed from Mandarin 湖南 (Húnán), literally "south of the lake," referring to Lake Dongting.

From Mandarin 山西 (Shānxī), literally "[land] west of the mountains," referring to the Taihang range.

From the name of the Apalachee, a Native American people of northern Florida, later applied by Spanish explorers to the wider mountain range.

Borrowed from German Willi.

From an old English word "tiffing," meaning taking a small drink or snack, used in British colonial India for the midday meal.

Borrowed from Spanish and Portuguese Vicente. Doublet of Vincent.

From Middle English glovere, formed from "glove" plus the occupational ending "-er."

From theme + -ed.

Formed from (acetani)lid(e) plus -caine, a suffix borrowed from cocaine and used in the names of many anaesthetics.

Formed from Benjamin plus the affectionate suffix -y.

From Latin Paulina, the feminine form of Paulinus, itself from Paulus ("small").

From gun, referring to someone who operates one.

From Lindsey in Lincolnshire, itself named after the "Isle of Lincoln," a stretch of land historically surrounded by fenland.

From unzip + -ed.

From a Middle English word for a chest or box, itself blending an Old English and an Old French term with the same meaning.

From the abbreviated German name of East Germany's Ministry for State Security, the Ministerium für Staatssicherheit, notorious for surveilling its own citizens.

From Rudolph + -y.

Borrowed from German Rudi.

From Old High German "hrod" (fame) and "wulf" (wolf).

From Italian Arno, from Latin Arnus.

For the given name, a short form of Old Norse compound names beginning with arn- (“eagle”).