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v. t. e. Etymology ( / ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi /, ET-im-OL-ə-jee[ 1]) is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of a word's semantic meaning across time, including its constituent morphemes and phonemes. [ 2][ 3] It is a subfield of historical linguistics, philology, and semiotics, and draws upon comparative semantics, morphology ...
Folk etymology – also known as (generative) popular etymology, [ 1] analogical reformation, (morphological) reanalysis and etymological reinterpretation[ 2] – is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more familiar one through popular usage. [ 3][ 4][ 5] The form or the meaning of an archaic ...
Online Etymology Dictionary. The Online Etymology Dictionary or Etymonline, sometimes abbreviated as OED (not to be confused with the Oxford English Dictionary, which the site often cites), is a free online dictionary that describes the origins of English words, written and compiled by Douglas R. Harper. [ 1]
Some Greek words were borrowed into Latin and its descendants, the Romance languages. English often received these words from French. Some have remained very close to the Greek original, e.g., lamp (Latin lampas; Greek λαμπάς ). In others, the phonetic and orthographic form has changed considerably.
Etymological dictionaries are the product of research in historical linguistics. For many words in any language, the etymology will be uncertain, disputed, or simply unknown. In such cases, depending on the space available, an etymological dictionary will present various suggestions and perhaps make a judgement on their likelihood, and provide ...
Origins of names of cities and towns in Hong Kong; Lists of North American place name etymologies; List of place names of French origin in the United States; List of place names of Spanish origin in the United States; List of place names in the United States of Native American origin; List of Chinook Jargon placenames; Sri Lankan place name ...
This is a list of English words inherited and derived directly from the Old English stage of the language. This list also includes neologisms formed from Old English roots and/or particles in later forms of English, and words borrowed into other languages (e.g. French, Anglo-French, etc.) then borrowed back into English (e.g. bateau, chiffon, gourmet, nordic, etc.).
Origin language and etymology Example(s) bacillus: rod-shaped Latin baculus, stick Bacillus anthracis: bacteri-Pertaining to bacteria: Latin bacterium; Greek βακτήριον (baktḗrion), small staff bacteriophage, bactericide: balan-of the glans penis or glans clitoridis: Greek βάλανος (bálanos), acorn, glans balanitis: bas-of or ...