Online Etymology Dictionary

discomfit (v.): c. 1200, as an adjective, from Old French desconfit "vanquished, defeated," past participle of desconfire "to defeat, destroy," from des- "not" (see dis-) + confire "make, prepare, accomplish," from Latin conficere (see confection).

Used as a verb in English from c. 1300. Weaker sense of "disconcert" is first recorded 1520s in English, probably by confusion with discomfort. Related: Discomfited; discomfiting.
chemise (n.): late Old English, cemes "shirt," from Old French chemise "shirt, undertunic, shift," or directly from Late Latin camisia "shirt, tunic" (Jerome; also source of Italian camicia, Spanish camisa); originally a soldier's word, probably via Gaulish, from Proto-Germanic *hamithjan (source also of Old Frisian hemethe, Old Saxon hemithi, Old English hemeðe, German hemd "shirt"), which is of uncertain origin (see heaven). The French form took over after c. 1200. Related: Chemisette.
Chester: Cestre (1086), from Old English Legacæstir (735) "City of the Legions," from Old English ceaster "Roman town or city," from Latin castrum "fortified place" (see castle (n.)). It was the base of the Second Legion Adiutrix in the 70s C.E. and later the 20th Legion Valeria Victrix. But the town's name in Roman times was Deoua (c. 150 C.E.), from its situation on the River Dee, a Celtic river name meaning "the goddess, the holy one."
chide (v.): late 12c., "scold, nag, rail," originally intransitive, from Old English cidan "to contend, quarrel, complain." Not found outside Old English (though Liberman says it is "probably related to OHG *kîdal 'wedge,'" with a sense evolution from "brandishing sticks" to "scold, reprove"). Past tense, past participle can be chided or chid or even (past participle) chidden (Shakespeare used it); present participle is chiding.
chink (n.1): "a split, crack," 1530s, with parasitic -k + Middle English chine (and replacing this word) "fissure, narrow valley," from Old English cinu, cine "fissure," related to cinan "to crack, split, gape," common Germanic (compare Old Saxon and Old High German kinan, Gothic uskeinan, German keimen "to germinate;" Middle Dutch kene, Old Saxon kin, German Keim "germ;" ), from PIE root *geie- "to sprout, split open." The connection being in the notion of bursting open.
chip (v.): early 15c., "to chip" (intransitive, of stone); from Old English forcippian "to pare away by cutting, cut off," verbal form of cipp "small piece of wood" (see chip (n.)). Transitive meaning "to cut up, cut or trim" is from late 15c. Sense of "break off fragments" is 18c. To chip in "contribute" (1861) is American English, perhaps from card-playing. Related: Chipped; chipping. Chipped beef attested from 1826.
Chippendale: "piece of furniture by, or in the style of, Chippendale," by 1871, from Thomas Chippendale (c. 1718-1779), English cabinetmaker. The family name (13c.) is from Chippingdale, Lancashire (probably from Old English ceaping "a market, marketplace," related to cheap). Chippendales beefcake dance revue, began late 1970s in a Los Angeles nightclub, the name said to have been chosen for its suggestion of elegance and class.
grime (n.): 1580s, of uncertain origin, probably alteration of Middle English grim "dirt, filth" (early 14c.), from Middle Low German greme "dirt" or another Low German source, from Proto-Germanic *grim- "to smear" (source also of Flemish grijm, Middle Dutch grime "soot, mask"), from PIE root *ghrei- "to rub" (see chrism). The verb was Middle English grymen (mid-15c.) but largely was replaced early 16c. by begrime.
grip (v.): Old English grippan "to grip, seize, obtain" (class I strong verb; past tense grap, past participle gripen), from West Germanic *gripjan (source also of Old High German gripfen "to rob," Old English gripan "to seize;" see gripe (v.)). Related: Gripped; gripping. French gripper "to seize," griffe "claw" are Germanic loan-words.
hinder (v.): Old English hindrian "to harm, injure, impair, check, repress," from Proto-Germanic *hinderojan (source also of Old Norse hindra, Old Frisian hinderia, Dutch hinderen, Old High German hintaron, German hindern "to keep back"), derivative verb from a root meaning "on that side of, behind" (see hind (adj.)); thus the ground sense is "to put or keep back," though this sense in English is recorded only from late 14c. Related: Hindered; hindering.
hint (n.): c. 1600 (Shakespeare), "an indirect suggestion intended to be caught by the knowing," apparently from obsolete hent, from Middle English hinten "to tell, inform" (c. 1400), from Old English hentan "to seize," from Proto-Germanic *hantijan (source also of Gothic hinþan "to seize"), related to hunt (v.). OED dates the sense "small piece of practical information" to 1777.
hippopotamus (n.): omnivorous ungulate pachydermatous mammal of Africa, 1560s, from Late Latin hippopotamus, from Greek hippopotamus "riverhorse," an irregular formation from earlier ho hippos potamios "the horse of the river"), from hippos "horse" (see equine) + adjective from potamos "river, rushing water" (see potamo-). Replaced Middle English ypotame (c. 1300), which is from the same source but deformed in Old French. Glossed in Old English as sæhengest.
Ypotamos comen flyngynge. ... Grete bestes and griselich ["Kyng Alisaunder," c. 1300]
Related: Hippopotamic.
evening (n.): from Old English æfnung "the coming of evening, sunset, time around sunset," verbal noun from æfnian "become evening, grow toward evening," from æfen "evening" (see eve). As a synonym of even (n.) in the sense "time from sunset to bedtime," it dates from mid-15c. and now entirely replaces the older word in this sense. Another Old English noun for "evening" was cwildtid.
foam (n.): Middle English fom, fome (c. 1300), from Old English fam "foam, saliva froth; sea," from West Germanic *faimo- (source also of Old High German veim, German Feim), from PIE root *(s)poi-mo- "foam, froth" (source also of Sanskrit phenah; Latin pumex "pumice," spuma "foam;" Old Church Slavonic pena "foam;" Lithuanian spaine "a streak of foam"). The plastic variety used in packaging, etc., so called from 1937.
foie-gras (n.): 1818, French, short for pâté de foie gras (1827 in English), literally "pie of fat liver;" originally served in a pastry (as still in Alsace), the phrase now chiefly in English with reference to the filling. French foie "liver" is cognate with Italian fegato, from Latin *ficatum. For pâté see pate (n.2); for gras see grease (n.).
frazzle (v.): c. 1825, "to unravel" (of clothing), from East Anglian variant of 17c. fasel "to unravel, fray" (as the end of a rope), from Middle English facelyn "to fray" (mid-15c.), from fasylle "fringe, frayed edge," diminutive of Old English fæs "fringe, border." Related: Frazzled, frazzling. Compare German Faser "thread, fiber, filament," Middle Dutch vese "fringe, fiber, chaff." Probably influenced in form by fray (v.).
grampus (n.): a word applied to killer whales and other large, dolphin-like creatures, 1590s, earlier graundepose (1520s), altered (by influence of grand) from Middle English graspeys (late 13c.), from Anglo-French grampais, from Old French graspois, craspois "whale, (salted) whale meat; blubber; seal," from Medieval Latin craspicis, literally "great fish" or "fat fish," from Latin crassus "thick" + piscis "fish" (see fish (n.)). For specifics of usage in English, see OED.
grant (n.): late 14c., "something granted; authoritative bestowal of a privilege, etc.," from Anglo-French graunt, Old French graant, collateral variant of creant "promise, assurance, vow; agreement, pact; will, wish, pleasure," from creanter "be pleasing; assure, promise, guarantee; confirm, authorize" (see grant (v.)). Earlier in English in now-obsolete sense of "allowance, permission" (c. 1200). Especially "money formally granted by an authority" from c. 1800. In American English, especially of land, from c. 1700.
invective (n.): "an attacking in words," 1520s, from Medieval Latin invectiva "abusive speech," from Late Latin invectivus "abusive, scolding" from invect-, past participle stem of invehere "to carry in, bring in, introduce; assault, assail; attack with words" (see inveigh). For nuances of usage, see humor (n.). The earlier noun form in English was inveccion (mid-15c.), and invective (adj.) was in Middle English.
Isabel: fem. proper name, a form of Elizabeth that seems to have developed in Provence. A popular English name in the Middle Ages; pet forms included Ibb, Libbe, Nibb, Tibb, Bibby, and Ellice. The Spanish form was Isabella, which is attested as a color name ("greyish-yellow") in English from c. 1600; the Isabella who gave her name to it has not been identified, and the usual stories are too late for the date. Related: Isabelline (adj.).
Holland: "the Netherlands," early 14c., from Dutch Holland, probably Old Dutch holt lant "wood land," describing the district around Dordrecht, the nucleus of Holland. Technically, just one province of the Netherlands, but in English use extended to the whole nation. Related: Hollandish. Hollands for "Holland gin" was common late 18c.-early 19c. As a place-name in England it represents Old English hoh-land "high-land, land on a spur or hill."
hone (n.): Old English han "a stone, rock, (boundary) stone," from Proto-Germanic *haino (source also of Old Norse hein "hone"), from PIE *ko- "to sharpen, whet." The specific sense "whetstone, stone used for sharpening tools that require a delicate edge" emerged in Middle English (early 14c.). "A hone differs from a whetstone in being of finer grit and more compact texture" [Century Dictionary].
mead (n.2): "meadow," Old English mæd, Anglian med "meadow, pasture," from Proto-Germanic *medwo (source also of Old Frisian mede, Dutch made, German Matte "meadow," Old English mæþ "harvest, crop"), from PIE *metwa- "a mown field," from root *me- (4) "mow, cut down grass or grain" (see mow (v.)). Now only archaic or poetic.
measure (v.): c. 1300, "to deal out by measure," from Old French mesurer "measure; moderate, curb" (12c.), from Late Latin mensurare "to measure," from Latin mensura "a measuring, a measurement; thing to measure by," from mensus, past participle of metiri "to measure," from PIE *me- (2) "to measure" (see meter (n.2)).

Replaced Old English cognate mæð "measure." Meaning "to ascertain spatial dimensions of" is mid-14c. To measure up "have the necessary abilities" is 1910, American English. Related: Measured; measuring.
locate (v.): 1650s, "to establish oneself in a place, settle," from Latin locatus, past participle of locare "to place, put, set, dispose, arrange," from locus "a place" (see locus). Sense of "mark the limits of a place" (especially a land grant) is attested from 1739 in American English; this developed to "establish (something) in a place" (1807) and "to find out the place of" (1882, American English). Related: Located; locating.
loom (n.): weaving machine, Old English geloma "utensil, tool," from ge-, perfective prefix, + -loma, of unknown origin (compare Old English andloman (plural) "apparatus, furniture"). Originally "implement or tool of any kind" (as in heirloom); thus, "the penis" (c. 1400-1600). Specific meaning "a machine in which yarn or thread is woven into fabric" is from c. 1400.
throe (n.): c. 1200, throwe "pain, pang of childbirth, agony of death," of uncertain origin, possibly from Old English þrawan "twist, turn, writhe" (see throw (v.)), or altered from Old English þrea (genitive þrawe) "affliction, pang, evil; threat, persecution" (related to þrowian "to suffer"), from Proto-Germanic *thrawo (source also of Middle High German dro "threat," German drohen "to threaten"). Modern spelling first recorded 1610s. Related: Throes.
thwaite (n.): "cleared land," 1620s, from Old Norse or Old Danish þveit "a clearing, meadow, paddock," literally "a cutting, cut-piece" (related to Old English þwitan "to cut, cut off;" see whittle). Always a rare word and now obsolete, but frequently encountered in place names, but "It is unclear whether the base meaning was 'something cut off, detached piece of land,' or 'something cut down, felled tree' ..." [Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names].
tidings (n.): "announcement of an event," c. 1200, from late Old English tidung "event, occurrence, piece of news," verbal noun from Old English tidan "to happen," or in part from Old Norse tiðendi (plural) "events, news," from tiðr (adj.) "occurring," from PIE *di-ti- (see tide (n.)). Similar formation in Norwegian tidende "tidings, news," Dutch tijding, German Zeitung "newspaper."
till (n.): "cashbox," mid-15c., from Anglo-French tylle "compartment," Old French tille "compartment, shelter on a ship," probably from Old Norse þilja "plank, floorboard," from Proto-Germanic *theljon. The other theory [Klein, Century Dictionary] is that the word is from Middle English tillen "to draw," from Old English -tyllan (see toll (v.)), with a sense evolution as in drawer (see draw (v.)).
timorous (adj.): early 15c., from Middle French timoureus (14c.), from Medieval Latin timorosus "fearful," from Latin timor "fear, dread, apprehension, anxiety; religious awe, reverence," from timere "to fear, be afraid, dread," of unknown origin. Some early senses in English seem to show confusion with Middle English temerous "rash" (see temerity). Related: Timorously; timorousness.
anent (prep.): "concerning, about," early 13c., onont "on level with," also "in the company of, fronting against," from Old English on efn "near to, close by," originally "on even (ground) with;" the parasitic -t added 12c. A northern form (in Midlands, anenst, with adverbial genitive), affected by English writers in Scottish sense of "in respect or reference to." Compare German neben "near to, by the side of," short for in eben, from Old High German ebani "equality."
angle (v.1): "to fish with a hook," mid-15c., from Old English angel (n.) "angle, hook, fishhook," related to anga "hook," from PIE *ang-/*ank- "to bend" (see angle (n.)). Compare Old English angul, Old Norse öngull, Old High German angul, German Angel "fishhook." Figurative sense is recorded from 1580s.
It is but a sory lyfe and an yuell to stand anglynge all day to catche a fewe fisshes. [John Palsgrave, 1530]
Related: Angled; angling.
angora (n.): type of wool, 1810, from Angora, city in central Turkey (ancient Ancyra, modern Ankara), which gave its name to the goat (1745 in English), and to its silk-like wool, and to a cat whose fur resembles it (1771 in English). The city name is from the Greek word for "anchor, bend" (see angle (n.)).
angst (n.): 1944, from German Angst "neurotic fear, anxiety, guilt, remorse," from Old High German angust, from the root of anger. George Eliot used it (in German) in 1849, and it was popularized in English by translation of Freud's work, but as a foreign word until 1940s. Old English had a cognate word, angsumnes "anxiety," but it died out.
anion (n.): "a negatively charged ion, which moves toward the anode (q.v.) during electrolysis," 1834, proposed by the Rev. William Whewell (1794-1866), English polymath, and published by English physicist Michael Faraday, from Greek anion "(thing) going up," neuter past participle of anienai "go up," from ana "up" (see ana-) + ienai "go" (see ion).
annoy (v.): late 13c., from Anglo-French anuier, Old French enoiier, anuier "to weary, vex, anger; be troublesome or irksome to," from Late Latin inodiare "make loathsome," from Latin (esse) in odio "(it is to me) hateful," ablative of odium "hatred" (see odium). Earliest form of the word in English was as a noun, c. 1200, "feeling of irritation, displeasure, distaste." Related: Annoyed; annoying; annoyingly. Middle English also had annoyful and annoyous (both late 14c.).
bleed (v.): Old English bledan "to let blood," in Middle English and after, "to let blood from surgically;" also "to emit blood," from Proto-Germanic *blodjan "emit blood" (source also of Old Norse blæða, German bluten), from *bhlo-to- "swell, gush, spurt" (see blood (n.)). Meaning "extort money from" is from 1670s. Of dyes or paints, from 1862. Related: Bled; bleeding.
boat (n.): Old English bat "boat, ship, vessel," from Proto-Germanic *bait- (source also of Old Norse batr, Dutch boot, German Boot), possibly from PIE root *bheid- "to split" (see fissure) if the notion is of making a boat by hollowing out a tree trunk; or it may be an extension of the name for some part of a ship. French bateau "boat" is from Old English or Norse. Spanish batel, Italian battello, Medieval Latin batellus likewise probably are from Germanic.
anode (n.): 1834, coined from Greek anodos "way up," from ana "up" (see ana-) + hodos "way" (see cede). Proposed by the Rev. William Whewell (1794-1866), English polymath, and published by English chemist and physicist Michael Faraday (1791-1867). So called from the path the electrical current was thought to take. Related: Anodic.
answer (n.): Old English andswaru "an answer, a reply," from and- "against" (see ante) + -swaru "affirmation," from swerian "to swear" (see swear), suggesting an original sense of "make a sworn statement rebutting a charge." A common Germanic compound (cognates: Old Saxon antswor, Old Norse andsvar, Old Frisian ondser, Danish and Swedish ansvar), implying a Proto-Germanic *andswara-. Meaning "a reply to a question," the main modern sense, was present in Old English. Meaning "solution of a problem" is from c. 1300.
ante: 1838 (n.), 1846 (v.), American English poker slang, apparently from Latin ante "before," from PIE *anti- "facing opposite, against," with derivatives meaning "in front of, before; end" (source also of Sanskrit antah "end, border, boundary," Hittite hanti "opposite," Greek anta, anten "opposite," anti "over against, opposite, before;" Old Lithuanian anta "on to;" Gothic anda "along;" Old English and- "against;" German ent- "along, against"), from root *ant- "front, forehead."
anthem (n.): Old English ontemn, antefn, "a composition (in prose or verse) sung antiphonally," from Late Latin antefana, from Greek antiphona "verse response" (see antiphon). Sense evolved to "a composition set to sacred music" (late 14c.), then "song of praise or gladness" (1590s). Used in reference to the English national song (technically, as OED points out, a hymn) and extended to those of other nations. Modern spelling is from late 16c., perhaps an attempt to make the word look more Greek.
antic (n.): 1520s, "grotesque or comical gesture," from Italian antico "antique," from Latin antiquus "old" (see antique). Originally (like grotesque) a 16c. Italian word referring to the strange and fantastic representations on ancient murals unearthed around Rome (especially originally the Baths of Titus, rediscovered 16c.); later extended to "any bizarre thing or behavior," in which sense it first arrived in English. As an adjective in English from 1580s, "grotesque, bizarre."
meet (v.): Old English metan "to find, find out; fall in with, encounter; obtain," from Proto-Germanic *motjan (source also of Old Norse mæta, Old Frisian meta, Old Saxon motian "to meet," Gothic gamotijan), from PIE root *mod- "to meet, assemble." Related to Old English gemot "meeting." Meaning "to assemble" is from 1520s. Of things, "to come into contact," c. 1300. Related: Met; meeting. To meet (someone) halfway in the figurative sense is from 1620s.
mellow (adj.): mid-15c., melwe "soft, sweet, juicy" (of ripe fruit), perhaps related to melowe, variant of mele "ground grain" (see meal (2)), influenced by Middle English merow "soft, tender," from Old English mearu. Meaning "slightly drunk" is from 1680s. Mellow yellow "banana peel smoked in an effort to get high" is from 1967. Related: Mellowly; mellowness.
peony (n.): a 16c. merger of Middle English pyony (from Old English peonie) and Old North French pione (Modern French pivoine), both from Late Latin peonia, from Latin pæonia, from Greek paionia (fem. of paionios), perhaps from Paion, physician of the gods (or Apollo in this aspect), and so called for the plant's healing qualities. The root, flowers, and seeds formerly were used in medicine.
perpetrate (v.): 1540s, from Latin perpetratus, past participle of perpetrare "to perform, to accomplish," from per- "completely" + patrare "carry out," originally "bring into existence," from pater "father" (see father (n.)). Earlier in English was perpetren, mid-15c., from Old French perpetrer. Neither good nor bad in Latin, first used in English in statutes, hence its sense of "to perform criminally." Related: Perpetrated; perpetrating.
pert (adj.): c. 1300 (implied in pertly), "evident, unconcealed," shortened form of Middle English apert "open, frank," from Old French apert, from Latin apertus, past participle of aperire "to open" (see overt). Sense of "saucy, bold" first recorded late 14c. Less pejorative meaning "lively, brisk, in good spirits" (c. 1500) survives in U.S. dialectal peart (with Middle English alternative spelling). Related: Pertness.
from (prep., adv.): Old English fram, preposition denoting departure or movement away in time or space, from Proto-Germanic *fra "forward, away from" (source also of Old Saxon, Old High German, Gothic fram "from, away," Old Norse fra "from," fram "forward"), from PIE *pro-mo-, suffixed form of *pro (see pro-); the Germanic sense of "moving away" apparently evolved from the notion of "forward motion." It is related to Old English fram "forward; bold; strong," and fremian "promote, accomplish" (see frame (v.)).