#WordOrigins
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butler

#etymology #wordorigins #language
butler — Wordorigins.org
10 November 2025 A  butler  is the chief servant in a household. The word comes to us from Anglo-Norman, the variety of French spoken in England following the Norman Conquest. The Anglo-Nor...
www.wordorigins.org
November 10, 2025 at 12:36 PM
wordorigins.bsky.social
Plants are evil?

#etymology #wordorigins #language
imp — Wordorigins.org
7 October 2025 We all know that an  imp  is a small devil or demon, or somewhat more playfully, a mischievous child. But it was not always so. Would you believe that  imp  origina...
www.wordorigins.org
November 7, 2025 at 11:44 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
Tabby: from a type of cloth or a woman’s name? Plus the obligatory cat picture

#etymology #wordorigins #language
tabby — Wordorigins.org
5 November 2025 Most of us know that a  tabby cat  is either a female house cat or one with a striped or brindled coat regardless of its sex. But tabby can also refer to an elderly woman....
www.wordorigins.org
November 5, 2025 at 12:30 PM
wordorigins.bsky.social
stiff upper lip: a not uniquely British quality

#etymology #wordorigins #language
stiff upper lip — Wordorigins.org
3 November 2025 Having a  stiff upper lip  is considered the quintessential British quality of resolution in the face of adversity. But surprisingly, the phrase itself is an American import...
www.wordorigins.org
November 3, 2025 at 11:23 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
hoax / hocus

#etymology #wordorigins #language
hoax / hocus — Wordorigins.org
31 October 2025 Hoax comes to us as a variant of hocus , which in turn is from the incantation hocus pocus , used in stage magic. The word hoax first appears in the mid eighteenth century as ...
www.wordorigins.org
October 31, 2025 at 11:40 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
A timely revision of an older entry, unfortunately

#etymology #wordorigins #language
measles — Wordorigins.org
29 October 2025 Measles is a potentially fatal, but vaccine-preventable, disease caused by a  Morbillivirus , and it is one of the most highly contagious diseases that infect humans. The disease...
www.wordorigins.org
October 29, 2025 at 12:12 PM
wordorigins.bsky.social
dyke

#etymology #wordorigins #language
dyke — Wordorigins.org
27 October 2025 A dyke is a lesbian or a woman whose appearance is regarded as masculine, with the implication that she is a lesbian. The word was originally a slur and is still offensive in many c...
www.wordorigins.org
October 27, 2025 at 2:41 PM
wordorigins.bsky.social
bootstrap / boot up

#etymology #wordorigins #language #technology #computers
bootstrap / boot up — Wordorigins.org
27 October 2025 A self-made person is one who  lifts or pulls oneself up by one’s bootstraps . The phrase is usually used unironically nowadays, despite the fact that the laws of physics make it...
www.wordorigins.org
October 27, 2025 at 11:49 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
RIP Tweetzkrieg

#etymology #wordorigins #language
tweetzkrieg — Wordorigins.org
24 October 2025 I try and avoid posting about brand-new neologisms. They often disappear before they become established, and I don’t want this site to be a graveyard of failed words. (Maybe someone s...
www.wordorigins.org
October 24, 2025 at 12:17 PM
globalvillageschool.org
🐸Fun for the word nerds! Do "frog", "schadenfreude" and "frolic" share a common Proto-Indo-European root? 🤞

𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀𝘆 𝗲𝘁𝘆𝗺𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆, 𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗴, 𝗯𝘂𝗻𝗻𝘆, 𝘀𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗹, 𝗯𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗷𝗮𝘆
https://bit.ly/3KYMOvD
📸: John Kelly

#wordorigins
1/2
Black-and-white drawing: a minimalist, somewhat cartoony sketch of a seated frog i(n black ink on a white background) looking directly at the viewer. 📸: John Kelly
October 22, 2025 at 4:32 PM
wordorigins.bsky.social
Saracen

#etymology #wordorigins #language
Saracen — Wordorigins.org
22 October 2025 Saracen  is term for a Muslim that is primarily used historically to refer to Muslims during the medieval period and especially in reference to the crusades. But it dates to ant...
www.wordorigins.org
October 22, 2025 at 11:00 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
emoji

#etymology #wordorigins #language
emoji — Wordorigins.org
20 October 2025 Emoji  are pictograms used in electronic communications. An emoji is a digital icon used to express an emotion or idea, a twenty-first century updating of the old ascii emoticon...
www.wordorigins.org
October 20, 2025 at 10:50 AM
curiosusapp.bsky.social
The word "blood" literally means "that which bursts out" in its ancient origins. #RandomFact #WordOrigins #Linguistics #LanguageTrivia #Blood
October 19, 2025 at 6:52 AM
oneiroweaver.bsky.social
Ever wonder where the phrase “chewing the fat” comes from? 👀 I say it all the time and finally looked it up — the origin’s actually pretty fascinating! Here’s the story: [link]
#FunFacts #WordOrigins #DidYouKnow #LanguageLover #Etymology #LearnSomethingNew
What does “chewing the fat” really mean? 12 social idioms explained
www.dictionaryscoop.com
October 18, 2025 at 4:37 PM
wordorigins.bsky.social
witch hunt

#etymology #wordorigins #language #uspolitics
witch hunt — Wordorigins.org
17 October 2025 The phrase  witch hunt  is surprisingly recent. One might expect it to date to the seventeenth century, when real hunts for supposed witches were rampant across Europe. But ...
www.wordorigins.org
October 17, 2025 at 11:47 AM
paninid.mastodon.world.ap.brid.gy
The word antifa is simply a clipping of antifascist.

https://wordorigins-org.ghost.io/antifa-2/

via @Wordorigins
antifa
[“Words in the News” is a weekly, premium feature or Wordorigins.org. I’m making this one available for free because of the word’s overwhelming salience in the current news cycle. If you’d like to see more of these, please upgrade to a paid subscription.] 16 October 2025
wordorigins-org.ghost.io
October 16, 2025 at 11:52 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
antifa

#etymology #wordorigins #language #uspolitics
antifa
[“Words in the News” is a weekly, premium feature or Wordorigins.org. I’m making this one available for free because of the word’s overwhelming salience in the current news cycle. If you’d like to see...
wordorigins-org.ghost.io
October 16, 2025 at 11:44 AM
kakape.bsky.social
TIL that the word salary actually derives from ‘sal’, the Latin word for salt because salt used to be so important and valuable that Roman soldiers used to be paid an allowance to cover their salt… #wordorigins
October 16, 2025 at 9:34 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
hag

#etymology #wordorigins #language
hag — Wordorigins.org
15 October 2025 The word  hag , like the woman it represents, is old, tracing back to Old English, but  hag  does not appear to be a very common word until the sixteenth century, when ...
www.wordorigins.org
October 15, 2025 at 10:47 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
Mecca

#etymology #wordorigins #language
Mecca — Wordorigins.org
13 October 2025 Mecca  is a place name, a toponym, that has acquired a figurative meaning over the years. Literally, it is a city in Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of the prophet Muhammad, to whi...
www.wordorigins.org
October 13, 2025 at 10:42 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
Judeo-Christian

#etymology #wordorigins #language
Judeo-Christian — Wordorigins.org
10 October 2025 Judeo-Christian  has two main meanings. The first refers to Jews who have converted to Christianity. The second, and today more common, meaning refers to the common ethical and ...
www.wordorigins.org
October 10, 2025 at 11:18 AM
wordorigins.bsky.social
Medbed: from science fiction to conspiracy theory to the presidential announcements

#etymology #wordorigins #language #uspolitics
medbed
[I’ve decided to attempt posting a “Words in the News” premium feature weekly. We’ll see how long I can keep that pace up—and much will depend on how many pay to subscribe to the premium features. I’m...
wordorigins-org.ghost.io
October 9, 2025 at 1:21 PM
wordorigins.bsky.social
deplatform

#wordorigins #etymology #language
deplatform — Wordorigins.org
8 October 2025 The verb  deplatform  is a relatively new one. Merriam-Webster defines it thusly:
www.wordorigins.org
October 8, 2025 at 10:54 AM