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 case + worker.

A straightforward compound of over + land.

From round + -ing.

From Latin dēfectiō, built on the same root as "defect."

From show + time.

From Middle English softener, built from soften plus the agent-suffix -er.

Borrowed from Hebrew מצווה (mitsvá), meaning "a commandment."

As a given name, cognate with "Jane," ultimately from Hebrew via the Greek form of John.

Formed from "wild" plus the verb-forming suffix "-en," the same pattern seen in "harden" and "soften."

A spelling variant of "camp" in its slang sense of "homosexual."

Formed from "miss" plus the informal ending "-ie," the same pattern used in words like "auntie."

Formed from tone + -er.

A blend of "smart" and "phone," first used in the mid-1990s as mobile phones began gaining computer-like features.

Built from over- + load.

From educate + -ed.

Probably from "dill" (as in "dilly-dally," to dawdle) plus the adjective/diminutive ending -y, though its exact origin as slang for "remarkable" is uncertain.

From "deflect" + the agent suffix "-or."

From paradox + -ical.

Origin uncertain; recorded in American English from the 1930s, possibly linked to an old slang word for a sixpence coin.

Borrowed from French gratin, from gratter ("to scrape").

From industrial plus the suffix -ist.

From camp + ground.

From Old French mesaventure, combining mis- ("wrongly") with "adventure."

From suspense plus the ending -ful.