Etymology is a fascinating field of study. People rarely think much about the words they use on a daily basis, but every word in the modern English language has been through an epic journey to find its way into our vocabulary.
This list presents 15 of the most interesting and surprising stories behind how some of the words we use today have made their way into the English language.
Oxymoron
An oxymoron is a phrase that contradicts itself, such as “intelligent idiot.” The word comes from the Greek words oxus, meaning sharp, and moros, meaning blunt. So oxymoron is itself an oxymoron.
Daisy
The word “daisy” means “day’s eye” in Old English. The flower takes its name from the fact that it was open during the day and closed at night.
Trade
Many English words are derived from Latin, and this results in a lot of English words being connected in ways which are not immediately obvious. The Latin word tradere, meaning “to hand something over,” forms the base of a lot of words which are connected to this concept. The most obvious example is “trade.” Others are more surprising, such as “traitor,” “tradition,” and “translation.”
Avocado
Europeans first encountered avocados in South America. The Spanish had difficulty reproducing the Nahuatl word ahuacatl, so they instead referred to the fruit as avocado, the Spanish word for lawyer. The French use the same word for both lawyer and avocado — avocat. The most interesting and surprising part of this story is that the Nahuatl ahuacatl means testicle!
Malaria
This disease has a straightforward translation. “Malaria” is a combination of the Spanish words mal and aria, which translate to “bad air.“
Eavesdropping
Before gutters became a standard feature of roofing, wide eaves, or overhangs, were used to direct rainwater away from the home and protect the walls and foundations from being damaged. The area directly beneath this was known as the eavesdrop, and it was a perfect location for anyone wishing to spy on conversations occurring in the home. “Eavesdropping” therefore came to mean spying on others’ conversations, and was a specific criminal offence enshrined in Anglo-Saxon law.
Dollar
One word with a complex history behind it is “dollar,” which came from the Joachimsthal valley in the modern-day Czech Republic. The valley was full of silver, which was used in the 16th century to produce coins known as Joachmisthaler. The coins were referred to by their shortened name, thaler or taler, which became daler in Danish and Norwegian, then eventually the English word “dollar.”
Muscle
The word “muscle” comes from the Latin word musculus, meaning “little mouse.” The name was given to muscles as early physicians saw the movement of the muscles beneath the skin as being similar to the movement of small mice running around.
Thug
The Thugee were a group of criminals who were infamous in India for committing acts of theft, murder, and mayhem. The word thugee was used in Urdu to describe anyone engaged in similar behavior, and eventually made its way into English as “thug.“
Beef/Ham
The English language is unusual in having different words for meat and the animals which provide it, such as “beef” for cow meat and “ham” for pig meat. The explanation lies in history. When the Normans conquered England in 1066, French became the official language of England’s new ruling class. The existing population continued to speak Anglo-Saxon, including the farmers and peasants, who referred to their animals as cows and pigs. However, the Normans used the French words bif and ham (respectively) to refer to the meat.
Engineer
This one might shock you: the word “engineer” is completely unrelated to the word “engine.” Instead, engineer comes from ingenium, the Latin word for talent, which also provides the root for the word “ingenious.”
Goodbye
The word “goodbye” is a shortened form of the phrase “God be with ye.” Other languages have similarly derived greetings, such as the Spanish word adios, which comes from the phrase “to God (a dios) I commend thee,” and the French word adieu (to God).
Helicopter/Pterodactyl
Here are two words you probably never guessed were related. “Helicopter” stems from the old Latin words helico, meaning spiral or vortex, and pter, meaning wings. Somewhat related is the word “pterodactyl,” which means winged fingers.
Soccer
Of all the vocabulary differences between British and American English, few cause as as much confusion and frustration as the use of the word “soccer,” as anyone who’s ever used an online forum frequented by both Brits and Americans will know. However, the word “soccer” is of British origin. It is a shortened form of “Association Football,” which referred to any game of soccer played by official association rules.
Nitpicking
“Nitpicking” commonly refers to poring over minor details, usually as a form of criticism. The expression is derived from “nits,” which are eggs laid by head lice, and the act of removing them from someone’s hair. Both forms of nitpicking clearly require a close attention to detail. Origin: English 1950s.
This list is by no means exhaustive, and every word in every language has a story behind it. Some of these stories have been lost to time, but many have survived to help enhance our understanding of the modern language.
