Etymology — The origins of English words

directorate

Origin

From "director" plus the suffix "-ate."

yeehaw

Origin

Formed from "gee" and "haw," commands traditionally used to direct a horse left or right.

impersonate

Origin

From im- + person + -ate, literally "to put into a person."

grinding

Middle English

Inherited from Middle English gryndynge. By surface analysis, grind + -ing.

decanter

Origin

From "decant" ("to pour off") + the agent suffix "-er."

brewing

Origin

The noun form of "brew" plus "-ing", covering both the literal craft of making beer and the figurative sense of tension building.

Levi

Hebrew

From Biblical Hebrew לֵוִי (lēwî), of uncertain origin.

minded

Origin

From mind plus the ending "-ed", forming an adjective describing someone's mental disposition.

blaming

Origin

Formed from the verb "blame" plus the ending "-ing," which turns an action into a noun describing that ongoing activity.

prevailing

Origin

From prevail + -ing.

hwan

Korean

Borrowed from the Korean word for the currency unit.

ume

Japanese

From Japanese "ume".

showroom

Origin · 2011

From show + room; the verb sense dates from around 2011, describing a shopping habit enabled by smartphones.

irrevocable

Latin

From Middle French irrévocable, from Latin irrevocabilis, built from ir- plus revoke plus -able.

Daniela

Origin

Feminine form of Daniel.

suki

Tagalog

Borrowed from Tagalog suki, itself from a Hokkien term literally meaning "principal guest," referring to a valued regular customer.

nougat

Latin

From French nougat, tracing back through Occitan to Latin nux, "nut" — a nod to the almonds or hazelnuts traditionally mixed in.

buckaroo

Spanish

An Americanized adaptation of Spanish vaquero ("cowboy"), reshaped under the influence of the English word "buck."

rooting

Middle English

From Middle English rotynge (“rooting”); equivalent to root + -ing.

Trent

Middle English

Inherited from Middle English Trent, from Old English Trēonte; Koch (2006) derives the river name from Proto-Celtic *tri-sent(o)-on-ā-, from the elements *trei (“through”) + *sentus (“path”). Traditionally said to be from Proto-Brythonic elements equivalent to tros (“over”) + hynt (“way”), often taken to mean "the trespasser" The surname in some cases is a shortening of "Tranent", or "Tranant" in Scottish Gaelic, a geographical location in East Lothian. "Tranant" itself is possibly of Brythonic (Celtic) origin.

derail

French

From French derailler, "to go off the rails," from de- + rail.

caveman

Origin

From cave + man, based on the idea that early humans lived in caves.

semis

Latin

Borrowed directly from Latin sēmis, meaning "a half."

starry

Middle English

From Middle English sterry, built from star plus the adjective ending -y.