Online Etymology Dictionary

sardine (n.): early 15c., from Latin sardina, from Greek sardine, sardinos, often said to be from Sardo "Sardinia" (see Sardinia), the Mediterranean island, near which the fish probably were caught and from which they were exported. But Klein writes, "It is hardly probable that the Greeks would have obtained fish from so far as Sardinia at a time relatively so early as that of Aristotle, from whom Athenaios quotes a passage in which the fish sardinos is mentioned." Colloquial phrase packed like sardines (in a tin) is recorded from 1911.
Sardinia: large island west of Italy, Latin, from Greek Sardo; perhaps named for the local Iberian people who settled there; the original form and meaning of the name is lost. A Punic (Phoenician) stelle from 7c. B.C.E. refers to it as Shardan. The oblique cases are sometimes Sardonos, etc., as if from *Sardon. Related: Sardinian.
sardonic (adj.): "apparently but not really proceeding from gaiety," 1630s, from French sardonique (16c.), from Latin sardonius (but as if from Latin *sardonicus) in Sardonius risus, loan-translation of Greek sardonios (gelos) "of bitter or scornful (laughter)," altered from Homeric sardanios (of uncertain origin) by influence of Sardonios "Sardinian," because the Greeks believed that eating a certain plant they called sardonion (literally "plant from Sardinia," see Sardinia) caused facial convulsions resembling those of sardonic laughter, usually followed by death. For nuances of usage, see humor (n.). Earlier in same sense sardonian (1580s), from Latin sardonius. Related: Sardonically.
sargasso (n.): "seaweed," 1590s, from Portuguese sargasso "seaweed," perhaps from sarga, a type of grape (on this theory, the sea plant was so called from its berry-like air sacs), or from Latin sargus, a kind of fish found in the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic, from Greek sargos. Sargasso Sea attested from 1819.
sarge (n.): representing the pronunciation of the familiar shortening of sergeant, by 1867.
sari (n.): also saree, long, wrapping garment of silk or cotton worn by Hindu women, 1785, from Hindi sari, from Prakrit sadi, from Sanskrit sati "garment, petticoat."
sarin (n.): type of odorless nerve gas, 1945, from German, but the name is of unknown origin. Other phosphorous compounds known in Germany by the end of World War II were called Tabun, soman, Diglykol.
sark (n.): "shirt, body garment of linen or cotton for either sex," late Old English serc "shirt, corselet, coat of mail," surviving as a Scottish and northern dialect word, from Old Norse serkr, cognate with Old English serk (see berserk). But Gordon lists it as a loan-word from Latin sarcia; other sources are silent on the point. Lithuanian sarkas "shirt," Old Church Slavonic sraka "tunic," Russian soročka, Finnish sarkki "shirt" perhaps are all from Germanic.
Sarmatia: Latin Sarmatia, from Greek Sarmates, name of an ancient tribe which wandered the plains of eastern Europe west of the Volga; later poetically identified with Poland. Related: Sarmatian.
sarong (n.): skirt-like garment, the Malay national garment, 1834, from Malay sarung "sheath, covering." OED traces it to "some mod. form of Skr. saranga "variegated."
SARS (n.): by 2003, acronym from severe acute respiratory syndrome.
sarsaparilla (n.): tropical American plant, 1570s, from Spanish zarzaparrilla, from zarza "bramble" (from Arabic sharas "thorny plant" or Basque sartzia "bramble") + parrilla, diminutive of parra "vine," which is of unknown origin. Hence, also, "a medicinal preparation of sarsaparilla" (1570s). In 16c.-17c. the dried roots were held to be efficient in treatment of syphilis.
sarsen (n.): "large sandstone boulder," 1640s, properly sarsen stone, i.e. "Saracen stone," from Saracen in the old sense of "pagan, heathen." The same word was applied to the ancient leavings outside Cornish tin mines, also known as Jews' pits, those being the terms that came to mind once to describe any ancient features, based on the Bible.
sarsenet (n.): also sarcenet, type of fine soft silk fabric, late 14c., from Anglo-French sarzinett (Old French sarrasinet), probably a diminutive (with -et) of Sarasin, Sarazin "Saracen," meaning Turkish or Arab (see Saracen). Compare Old French drap sarrasinois, Medieval Latin pannus saracenius.
sartorial (adj.): "pertaining to a tailor," 1807, from Modern Latin sartorius, from Late Latin sartor "tailor" (source also of French sartre "tailor"), literally "patcher, mender," from Latin sart-, past participle stem of sarcire "to patch, mend," from PIE root *serk- "to make whole." Earlier in English in same sense was Related: sartorian (1660s). Sartorius as the name of the long leg muscle is because it is used in crossing the legs to bring them into the position needed to sit like a tailor. Related: Sartorially.
sash (n.1): strip of cloth, 1590s, originally in reference to Oriental dress, "strip of cloth twisted into a turban," from Arabic shash "muslin cloth." Meaning "strip of cloth worn about the waist or over the shoulder" first recorded 1680s.
sash (n.2): framed part of a window, 1680s, sashes, mangled Englishing of French châssis "frame" of a window or door (see chassis). French word taken as a plural and -s trimmed off by 1704. Sash-weight attested from 1737.
sashay (v.): 1836, mangled Englishing of French chassé "gliding step" (in square dancing), literally "chased," past participle of chasser "to chase," from Old French chacier "to hunt," from Vulgar Latin *captiare (see capable, and compare chase, catch). Related: Sashayed; sashaying. The noun is attested from 1900.
sashimi (n.): "thin slices of raw fish," 1880, from Japanese, from sashi "pierce" + mi "flesh."
Saskatchewan: Canadian province, named for the river running through it, from Cree kis-si-ska-tches-wani-sipi "rapid flowing river."
sasquatch (n.): 1929, from Halkomelem (Salishan), a native language of the Pacific Northwest, sæsq'ec, one of a race of huge, hairy man-monsters supposed to inhabit the Pacific northwest woods in American Indian lore and also known as bigfoot.
sass (n.): "impudence," 1835, back-formation from sassy. The verb is first recorded 1856, from the noun. Related: Sassed; sassing. Sass (n.) as a variant of sauce is attested from 1775.
sassafras (n.): small flowering tree of North America, 1570s, from Spanish sasafras, perhaps an adaptation of saxifraga "saxifrage," from Late Latin saxifragia, variant of saxifraga (see saxifrage). But the connection of the plants is difficult to explain, and the word perhaps represents a lost Native American name that sounded like Spanish saxifraga and was altered to conform to it. The tree supposedly was discovered by the Spanish in 1528.
Sassanid: dynasty that ruled the Persian Empire 211-651 C.E., 1776, from Medieval Latin Sassanidæ (plural), from Sasan, grandfather of Ardashir I, who founded the dynasty.
Sassenach (n.): Gaelic for "English person," 1771, Sassenaugh, literally "Saxon," from Gaelic Sasunnach, from Latin Saxones, from a Germanic source (such as Old English Seaxe "the Saxons;" see Saxon). The modern form of the word was established c. 1814 by Sir Walter Scott, from Scottish Sasunnoch, Irish Sasanach, Welsh Seisnig.
sassy (adj.): 1833, American English, alteration of saucy. Related: Sassily; sassiness.
SAT (n.): 1961, initialism (acronym) for Scholastic Aptitude Test.
Satan (n.): proper name of the supreme evil spirit in Christianity, Old English Satan, from Late Latin Satan (in Vulgate in Old Testament only), from Greek Satanas, from Hebrew satan "adversary, one who plots against another," from satan "to show enmity to, oppose, plot against," from root s-t-n "one who opposes, obstructs, or acts as an adversary."

In Septuagint (Greek) usually translated as diabolos "slanderer," literally "one who throws (something) across" the path of another (see devil (n.)), though epiboulos "plotter" is used once.
In biblical sources the Hebrew term the satan describes an adversarial role. It is not the name of a particular character. Although Hebrew storytellers as early as the sixth century B.C.E. occasionally introduced a supernatural character whom they called the satan, what they meant was any one of the angels sent by God for the specific purpose of blocking or obstructing human activity. [Elaine Pagels, "The Origin of Satan," 1995]
satanic (adj.): 1667 (in "Paradise Lost"), "pertaining to Satan," from Satan + -ic. Meaning "diabolical" is from 1793. Related: Satanical (1540s).
Satanism (n.): 1560s, "satanic disposition," from Satan + -ism. Applied 1820s-30s to the poetry of Byron, etc. Meaning "worship of Satan" dates from 1895, with reference to France, where it was said to be active at that time.
Satanist (n.): 1550s, from Satan + -ist. Ppplied by their enemies to Protestant sects. Meaning "Satan-worshipper" is from 1896.
Satanophobia (n.): "morbid dread of Satan," 1860, from Satan + -phobia, with connective -o-.
satay (n.): 1934, from Malay or Javanese satai.
satchel (n.): "small bag," mid-14c., from Old French sachel, from Late Latin saccellum "money bag, purse," diminutive of Latin sacculus, diminutive of saccus "bag" (see sack (n.1)).
sate (v.): "to satisfy, surfeit," c. 1600, alteration (by influence of Latin satiare "satiate") of Middle English saden "become satiated; satiate," from Old English sadian "to satiate, fill; be sated, get wearied," from Proto-Germanic *sadon "to satisfy, sate," from root *sa- "to satisfy" (see sad (adj.)). Related: Sated; sating.
sateen (n.): "glossy cloth resembling satin," 1835, variant of satin (q.v.), perhaps influenced by velveteen, where the ending is a variant of -ine (1).
satellite (n.): 1540s, "follower or attendant of a superior person," from Middle French satellite (14c.), from Latin satellitem (nominative satelles) "attendant, companion, courtier, accomplice, assistant," perhaps from Etruscan satnal (Klein), or a compound of roots *satro- "full, enough" + *leit- "to go" (Tucker); compare English follow, which is constructed of similar roots.

Meaning "planet that revolves about a larger one" first attested 1660s, in reference to the moons of Jupiter, from Latin satellites, which was used in this sense 1610s by German astronomer Johannes Kepler (1571-1630). Galileo, who had discovered them, called them Sidera Medicæa in honor of the Medici family. Meaning "man-made machinery orbiting the Earth" first recorded 1936 as theory, 1957 as fact. Meaning "country dependent and subservient to another" is recorded from 1800.
satiable (adj.): 1560s; see satiate + -able.
satiate (v.): mid-15c., from Latin satiatus, past participle of satiare "fill full, satisfy," from satis "enough," from PIE root *sa- "to satisfy" (source also of Gothic saþs "satiated," Old English sæd "satisfied;" see sad). Related: Satiated; satiating.
satiation (n.): 1630s, noun of action from satiate (v.).
satiety (n.): 1530s, from Middle French satiété, from Latin satietatem (nominative satietas) "abundance, sufficiency, fullness," from satis "enough," from PIE root *sa- "to satisfy" (see sad).
satin (n.): mid-14c., from Old French satin (14c.), perhaps from Arabic (atlas) zaytuni, literally "(satin) from Zaitun," a Chinese city, perhaps modern Quanzhou in Fukien province, southern China, a major port in the Middle Ages, with a resident community of European traders. The form of the word perhaps influenced in French by Latin seta "silk." OED finds the Arabic connection etymologically untenable and takes the French word straight from Latin. As an adjective from mid-15c.
satinette (n.): also satinet, 1703, from French satinet, diminutive of satin (see satin). So called because it was thought to resemble satin.
satire (n.): late 14c., "work intended to ridicule vice or folly," from Middle French satire (14c.) and directly from Latin satira "satire, poetic medley," earlier satura, in lanx satura "mixed dish, dish filled with various kinds of fruit," literally "full dish," from fem. of satur "sated" (see saturate).

First used in the literary sense in Latin in reference to a collection of poems in various meters on a variety of subjects by the late republican Roman poet Ennius. The matter of the little that survives of his verse does not seem to be particularly satiric, but in classical Latin the word came to mean especially a poem which assailed the prevailing vices, one after another. Altered in Latin by influence of Greek satyr, on mistaken notion that the literary form is related to the Greek satyr drama (see satyr).
Satire, n. An obsolete kind of literary composition in which the vices and follies of the author's enemies were expounded with imperfect tenderness. In this country satire never had more than a sickly and uncertain existence, for the soul of it is wit, wherein we are dolefully deficient, the humor that we mistake for it, like all humor, being tolerant and sympathetic. Moreover, although Americans are 'endowed by their Creator' with abundant vice and folly, it is not generally known that these are reprehensible qualities, wherefore the satirist is popularly regarded as a sour-spirited knave, and his every victim's outcry for codefendants evokes a national assent. [Ambrose Bierce, "Devil's Dictionary," 1911]

Proper satire is distinguished, by the generality of the reflections, from a lampoon which is aimed against a particular person, but they are too frequently confounded. [Johnson]

[I]n whatever department of human expression, wherever there is objective truth there is satire [Wyndham Lewis, "Rude Assignment," 1950]
For nuances of usage, see humor (n.).
satire (v.): 1905, from satire (n.). Related: Satired; satiring.
satiric (adj.): c. 1500, from French satirique, from Late Latin satiricus, from satira (see satire (n.)). Earlier (late 14c.) as a noun meaning "a writer of satires."
satirical (adj.): 1520s, from Late Latin satiricus, from Latin satira "satire, poetic medley" (see satire (n.)) + -al (1). Related: Satirically.
satirist (n.): 1580s; see satire (n.) + -ist.
satirize (v.): c. 1600, from French satiriser (see satire (n.)). Related: Satirized; satirizing.
satisfaction (n.): early 14c., "performance of an act set forth by a priest or other Church authority to atone for sin," from Old French satisfaction (12c.), from Latin satisfactionem (nominative satisfactio) "a satisfying of a creditor," noun of action from past participle stem of satisfacere (see satisfy). Senses of "contentment, appeasement" and "action of gratifying" first recorded late 14c.; the former not common before 16c.