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Learn the origin and history of English words, phrases, and idioms from this comprehensive and reliable source. Explore articles on etymology, linguistics, and word meanings with examples and sources.
- Word Origin Stories
Etymology is the study of the origin of words and how the...
- Etymology
As a modern branch of linguistic science treating of the...
- Snakes of Iceland
The famous literary anecdote of the book chapter anyone can...
- Form
late 14c., name for the god of dreams in Ovid, son of Sleep,...
- Search and Research
Inside the etymonline staff lounge. This is the fun part, if...
- Homing in on Harlequin
While the exact origin and etymology remain uncertain, it is...
- Mandrake Roots
Both disciplines dig to learn, but etymology is the platonic...
- Sources
Palmer, the Rev. Abram Smythe, Folk-Etymology, London,...
- The Paragraph
In other words, given a name that means "light" on account...
- Hagiolatry
"worship of saints," 1798, from hagio- + -latry "worship...
- Word Origin Stories
Etymology (/ ˌ ɛ t ɪ ˈ m ɒ l ə dʒ i /, ET-im-OL-ə-jee) is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of a word's semantic meaning across time, including its constituent morphemes and phonemes.
Learn the origin and history of words from the study of etymology, a branch of linguistics. Find examples, related phrases, and common confusions with entomology.
Learn about the history and methods of etymology, the study of word origins and meanings. Explore the contributions of ancient and modern linguists, such as Georg Curtius, to the field of etymology.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Etymology is the study of the origin and history of words, or a study of this type relating to one particular word. Learn more about etymology, its pronunciation, and see examples from the Cambridge English Corpus.
Learn what etymology is and how to use it to investigate the origins and histories of words. Explore the types of etymology, such as root, modification, semantic, generation, and borrowing, and see examples from literature and everyday language.
