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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A blend of "my" and "lady," reshaped by influence from the French word milady, itself borrowed from the English phrase "my lady." Compare the male equivalent "milord."

"Bus" here is a clipping of "omnibus" in the older sense of "assistant waiter," combined with "boy."

The past participle of absorb, formed with the standard -ed ending.

From Latin frāctūra ("a break"), from frangere ("to break") — related to fraction and fragment.

From Old French escalope, "shell," a doublet of "escalope" and related to "scale" and "shell."

From Old English sċielfisċ, "shell" plus "fish."

From permanent + -ly.

From Old French garet ("bend of the knee"), ultimately from a Gaulish Celtic word meaning shank or calf.

From the Latin-derived verb precede (\"to go before\"), plus the -ing ending.

From Portuguese fado, meaning "fate," ultimately from Latin fatum — the same root as the English word "fate."

From gun + -man.

From "archaeology" plus the adjective suffix "-ical".

From "corn" plus "-y." The "hackneyed" sense is said to come from cheap jokes once printed in mail-order seed catalogues aimed at farmers.

Shortened from "turbocharged," describing the boost a turbocharger gives an engine.

From "shuck," originally something considered worthless.

A straightforward compound of back + stabber, painting the picture of an attack that comes from behind rather than face-to-face.

From "kid" + the informal suffix "-o," found in similar casual coinages like "cheerio."

Named after its co-founder, the Swiss-born racing driver Louis Chevrolet, who helped launch the company in 1911.

From kook + the adjective-forming suffix -y.

From "flatter" + the agent suffix "-er."

Formed from romantic plus the suffix -ism, marking it as a named movement or ideology.

A habitational surname from Old English byrum ("at the byre or cattleshed").