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 French contestant, the present participle of contester ("to contest").

From "clever" plus the noun-forming suffix "-ness."

From manipulate plus the adjective-forming suffix -ive.

From puppet plus the agent suffix -eer, as in "engineer" or "auctioneer."

From passage plus way.

From Ancient Greek skoliosis, "twisting" or "torsion."

From Rick + -y.

From Old French espaigneul, meaning roughly "Spanish (dog)," since the breed was associated with Spain.

From Old English þyddan, "to strike or press," likely imitative of the sound itself.

From Middle English gardener, borrowed from Anglo-Norman French gardinier, an occupational term built on "garden".

From unify plus the noun-forming suffix -ification, describing the process of making something unified.

From Middle French unifier, from Late Latin unificare.

From Old English slǣplēas, literally "sleep" plus "-less" ("without").

Borrowed directly from French extraordinaire; a doublet (same root, different path into English) of "extraordinary."

From im- ("not") + practical.

From "validate" + the noun-forming suffix "-ion".

Formed from "straight" plus the verb-forming suffix "-en."

From Old French chevetaine, from Latin capitaneus ("head, chief") — the same root that gave English "captain."

From Old French franchise ("freedom"), from franc ("free") — related to "frank."

From disappear + -ance.

From French detachement, from detacher, "to detach".

From French caprice, from Italian capriccio, originally meaning "a sudden fright" — literally a "hedgehog head" (hair standing on end), from caput ("head") and riccio ("hedgehog").

From Old French requisicion, from Medieval Latin requisitio, ultimately from the same root as "requisite."

From Chinese cha (茶, "tea"), which spread into English through Cantonese and Hindustani/Persian routes — a doublet of the word "tea," which entered English via a different Chinese dialect.