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 hard + wired, originally an electronics term for circuits fixed by physical wiring rather than programmable logic.

From Ancient Greek Byzantion, named after its legendary founder Byzas.

From script + writer — someone whose job is producing scripts.

A compound of gun and boat.

Simply guard + house.

Named after the 18th-century Scottish naturalist Dr. Alexander Garden.

From the Germanic personal name Bruno combined with an old Low German word for "village" — literally "Bruno's settlement".

From poop + -y.

From "seamster" (an old, originally gender-neutral word for someone who sews) plus the feminine suffix -ess.

From Old French curable, built from "cure" plus the suffix "-able."

From shop + lifter ("one who steals").

From Japanese 宮古島 (miyako-jima).

A later variant of "empathic," reshaped to sound closer to "sympathetic."

A compound of school and work.

Anglicized from Dutch Spaak.

Formed by adding the feminine ending "-a" to the male name Edwin.

Borrowed from Italian biscotti, the plural of biscotto ("biscuit") — a relative of the English word "biscuit", both ultimately meaning "twice-cooked".

An anglicised form of the Irish surname Ó Luanaigh.

From Hebrew Yehoyakim, meaning "Yahweh will establish."

From Middle English breowestre, a feminine agent form of "brew" using the old "-ster" ending once reserved for women's occupations.

Borrowed from Spanish Catalina, a form of the name Catherine.

From the phrasal verb "stow away," meaning to hide oneself among stowed cargo.

From "fist" plus the suffix "-ful," meaning "an amount that fills."

From fish and net.