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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The plural of an old nautical sense of "road," meaning an anchorage rather than a route for vehicles.

From Middle English wonders ("wonderful"), reshaped in spelling to match other -ous adjectives; ultimately from Old English wundor, "wonder, miracle."

From Old English mearcung, formed from "mark" plus "-ing."

From "dusk" plus the adjective ending "-y," describing something with the dim, shadowy quality of evening light.

From Old French, ultimately from Latin dormire, "to sleep."

From Latin miser, "wretched, unhappy" — the sense shifted over time from "a wretched person" to "a person made wretched by greed."

From Old French sumunce, from Vulgar Latin summonsa, related to summonēre ("to summon").

Coined by California historian Kevin Starr.

From the phrasal verb "blow out," describing something bursting or erupting suddenly.

From Old French celier, from Latin cellarium, "storeroom," itself from cella.

From excessive + the adverb suffix -ly.

From train + -ed.

From physical plus the adverb-forming suffix -ly.

From provision plus the adjective ending -al, echoing the older French provisionnel and Latin provisionalis.

An Australian respelling of "guana," itself shortened from "iguana."

An altered form of "pommel," originally meaning to strike with the hilt of a sword.

Formed from torrent plus the adjective ending -ial.

From French torrent, from Italian torrente, from Latin torrens ("burning, seething, roaring"), from torrere, "to scorch."

From Old French rafle, a dice game (also meaning "plundering"), from a verb meaning "to snatch or seize" — related to the idea of grabbing a prize by chance.

From craig (“rock”).

From smuggle + the agent suffix -er, meaning "one who smuggles."

From process + -ing.

From Hebrew ḥanukkah, meaning "dedication" or "consecration."

From baby + sitting.