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 Latin Horātius, a Roman gens name of uncertain meaning. Doublet of Horace.

From Old French rasseürer, from re- plus asseürer ("to assure").

From Latin Marcia, the feminine form of Marcius, itself derived from Mārs, the Roman god of war.

From Old English trēowþ, "truth, faith, fidelity," the same root that gives us "truth" — troth is essentially an older, more formal-sounding twin of that word.

Italian · 2024

From Italian Luigi, a cognate of Louis and Ludwig. The slang verb sense emerged online after the December 2024 killing of a US healthcare CEO, following media coverage of the accused, Luigi Mangione.

From a Norman surname from a place in Normandy, from Old French Saint-Maur, from Late Latin Sanctus Maurus (“Saint Maurus”). The name is cognate to Murry and Maurice.

From Hebrew קַיִן (Káyin, "craftsman").

From Ancient Greek Κῦρος (Kûros), from Old Persian kuruš.

A Middle English diminutive of French Léon, Latin Leo (“lion”), or of the Middle English nickname Lion + -el (diminutive suffix).

Ancient Greek · 1860

Borrowed from French Marguerite in the 1860s, ultimately from the Ancient Greek margarítēs ("pearl") — a doublet of Margaret and margarita.

From Latin "Sara," itself from the Hebrew name Sarah.

From Old English, meaning roughly "clearing on a riverbank."

From Ancient Greek Κυνθία (Kunthía), "of Mount Cynthus," the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis.

Anglicized from Gaelic Maol Chaluim, literally "devotee of Saint Columba."

An Old English byname for a Welshman or Breton, from Anglo-Norman waleis (“foreign”); see wǣlisċ.

From Latin Marcella.

From Old French norreis, meaning a northerner or migrant from the north.

From Middle English Carleol, from a Cumbric name meaning roughly "fort of Luguvalium," ultimately honoring the Celtic god Lugus.

Coined in 17th-century France as the feminine of Henri; the root of English Harriet and Henrietta.

From responsible plus -ly.

From Middle English bilevable, beleevable, equivalent to believe + -able.

From Greek haimorrhoos ("flowing with blood"), rooted in haima ("blood") and rheo ("to flow").

A compound of head and stone, referring to the stone set at the "head" end of a grave.

A straightforward combination of "hair" and "dryer."