Online Etymology Dictionary

gush (v.): c. 1400, "to rush out suddenly and forcefully" (of blood, water, etc.), probably formed imitatively in English or from Low German, or from or based on Old Norse gusa "to gush, spurt," from PIE *gus-, from PIE *gheus- "to pour," and related to geyser. Metaphoric sense of "speak in an effusive manner" first recorded 1873. Related: Gushed; gushing. The noun is 1680s, from the verb.
gust (n.): 1580s, "sudden squall of wind," possibly a dialectal survival from Old Norse gustr "a cold blast of wind" (related to gusa "to gush, spurt") or Old High German gussa "flood," both from Proto-Germanic *gustiz, from PIE *gheus-, from root *gheu- "to pour" (see found (v.2)). Probably originally in English as a nautical word.
ewe (n.): Old English eowu "female sheep," fem. of eow "sheep," from Proto-Germanic *awi, genitive *awjoz (source also of Old Saxon ewi, Old Frisian ei, Middle Dutch ooge, Dutch ooi, Old High German ouwi "sheep," Gothic aweþi "flock of sheep"), from PIE *owi- "sheep" (source also of Sanskrit avih, Greek ois, Latin ovis, Lithuanian avis "sheep," Old Church Slavonic ovica "ewe," Old Irish oi "sheep," Welsh ewig "hind").
exaggerate (v.): 1530s, "to pile up, accumulate," from Latin exaggeratus, past participle of exaggerare "heighten, amplify, magnify," literally "to heap, pile, load, fill," from ex- "thoroughly" (see ex-) + aggerare "heap up, accumulate," figuratively "amplify, magnify," from agger (genitive aggeris) "heap," from aggerere "bring together, carry toward," from assimilated form of ad- "to, toward" (see ad-) + gerere "carry" (see gest). Sense of "overstate" first recorded in English 1560s. Related: Exaggerated; exaggerating.
excelsior: Latin excelsior "higher," comparative of excelsus (adj.) "high, elevated, lofty," past participle of excellere "rise, be eminent" (see excel). Taken 1778 as motto of New York State, where it apparently was mistaken for an adverb. Popularized 1841 as title of a poem by Longfellow. As a trade name for "thin shavings of soft wood used for stuffing cushions, etc.," first recorded 1868, American English.
excise (n.): "tax on goods," late 15c., from Middle Dutch excijs (early 15c.), apparently altered from accijs "tax" (by influence of Latin excisus "cut out or removed," see excise (v.)), traditionally from Old French acceis "tax, assessment" (12c.), from Vulgar Latin *accensum, ultimately from Latin ad- "to" (see ad-) + census "tax, census" (see census). English got the word, and the idea for the tax, from Holland.
excursion (n.): 1570s, "a deviation in argument," also "a military sally," from Latin excursionem (nominative excursio) "a running forth, sally, excursion, expedition," figuratively "an outset, opening," noun of action from past participle stem of excurrere "run out, run forth, hasten forward; project, extend," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + currere "to run" (see current (adj.)). Sense of "journey" recorded in English by 1660s.
expectorate (v.): c. 1600, "to clear out the chest or lungs," a literal use of Latin expectoratus, past participle of expectorare, which in classical use was figurative, "scorn, expel from the mind," literally "drive from the breast, make a clean breast," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + pectus (genitive pectoris) "breast" (see pectoral (adj.)). Its use as a euphemism for "spit" is recorded by 1827. The classical Latin figurative sense appears in English 17c. but is now obsolete. Related: Expectorated; expectorating.
expire (v.): c. 1400, "to die," from Old French expirer "expire, elapse" (12c.), from Latin expirare/exspirare "breathe out, blow out, exhale; breathe one's last, die," hence, figuratively, "expire, come to an end, cease," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + spirare "to breathe" (see spirit (n.)). "Die" is the older sense in English; that of "breathe out" is first attested 1580s. Of laws, patents, treaties, etc., mid-15c. In 17c. also transitive. Related: Expired; expiring.
ret (v.): "to soak stems of fibrous plants (flax, hemp, jute, etc.) to soften them," mid-15c., probably from Middle Dutch roten (or an unrecorded cognate Old Norse word that is related to Norwegian røyta, Swedish röta, Danish røde); considered to be related to Old English rotian "to rot" (see rot (v.)), but the vowel is difficult.
retch (v.): 1540s, originally "to clear the throat, to cough up phlegm," from Old English hræcan "to cough up, spit" (related to hraca "phlegm"), from Proto-Germanic *khrækijan (source also of Old High German rahhison "to clear one's throat"), of imitative origin (compare Lithuanian kregeti "to grunt"). Meaning "to make efforts to vomit" is from 1850; sense of "to vomit" is first attested 1888. Related: Retched; retching.
retro (adj.): 1974, from French rétro (1973), supposedly first used of a revival c. 1968 of Eva Peron-inspired fashions and short for rétrograde (see retrograde). There is an isolated use in English from 1768, and the word apparently was used in 19c. French as a term in billiards. As a noun, short for retro-rocket (1948) from 1961.
thorp (n.): Old English ðorp "village, hamlet, farm, estate," reinforced by Old Norse ðorp, both from Proto-Germanic *thurpa- (source also of Old Frisian thorp, Frisian terp, Middle Dutch, Dutch dorp, German dorf "village," Gothic þaurp "estate, land, field"), probably from PIE root *treb- "dwelling" (see tavern). Preserved in place names ending in -thorp, -thrup.
thrift (n.): c. 1300, "fact or condition of thriving," also "prosperity, savings," from Middle English thriven "to thrive" (see thrive), influenced by (or from) Old Norse þrift, variant of þrif "prosperity," from þrifask "to thrive." Sense of "habit of saving, economy" first recorded 1550s (thrifty in this sense is recorded from 1520s; also see spendthrift). Thrift shop attested by 1919.
repose (v.2): "put, place," mid-15c., from Latin repos-, stem of reponere "put back, set back, replace, restore; put away, lay out, stretch out," from re- "back, away" (see re-) + ponere "to put, place" (past participle positus; see position (n.)). Or perhaps [Klein] formed in Middle English from Old French poser, on model of disposen "dispose."
reprieve (v.): 1570s, reprive, "take back to prison," alteration (perhaps by influence of reprove) of Middle English repryen "to remand, detain" (late 15c.), probably from Middle French repris, past participle of reprendre "take back" (see reprise). Meaning "to suspend an impending execution" is recorded from 1590s; this sense evolved because being sent back to prison was the alternative to being executed. Spelling with -ie- is from 1640s, perhaps by analogy of achieve, etc. Related: Reprieved; reprieving.
reservation (n.): late 14c., "act of reserving," from Old French reservation (14c.) and directly from Late Latin reservationem (nominative reservatio), noun of action from past participle stem of Latin reservare (see reserve (n.)). Mental sense is from c. 1600. U.S. sense "tract of public land set aside for some special use" is recorded from 1789, originally in reference to the Six Nations in New York State. Meaning "act or fact of engaging a room, a seat, etc." is from 1904, originally American English.
expostulate (v.): 1530s, "to demand, to claim," from Latin expostulatus, past participle of expostulare "to demand urgently, remonstrate, find fault, dispute, complain of, demand the reason (for someone's conduct)," from ex- "from" (see ex-) + postulare "to demand" (see postulate (v.)). Friendlier sense of "to reason earnestly (with someone) against a course of action, etc." is first recorded in English 1570s. Related: Expostulated; expostulating.
expunge (v.): c. 1600, from Latin expungere "prick out, blot out, mark (a name on a list) for deletion" by pricking dots above or below it, literally "prick out," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + pungere "to prick, pierce," related to pugnus "a fist" (see pugnacious). According to OED, taken by early lexicographers in English to "denote actual obliteration by pricking;" it adds that the sense probably was influenced by sponge (v.). Related: Expunged; expunging; expungible.
expurgation (n.): early 15c., "a cleansing from impurity," from Latin expurgationem (nominative expurgatio), noun of action from past participle stem of expurgare "to cleanse out, purge, purify; clear from censure, vindicate, justify," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + purgare "to purge" (see purge (v.)). Sense of "a removal of objectionable passages from a literary work" first recorded in English 1610s. Related: Expurgatory.
extant (adj.): 1540s, "standing out above a surface," from Latin extantem (nominative extans), present participle of extare "stand out, be visible, exist," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + stare "to stand," from PIE root *stā- "to stand" (see stet). Sense of "in existence" attested in English by 1560s. Related: Extance; extancy, both 17c., both obsolete.
extenuate (v.): 1520s, from Latin extenuatus, past participle of extenuare "lessen, make small, reduce, diminish, detract from," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + tenuare "make thin," from tenuis "thin" (see tenet). Used over the years in a variety of literal and figurative senses in English. Related: Extenuated; extenuating. Extenuating circumstances (1660s) are those which lessen the magnitude of guilt (opposed to aggravating).
exterminate (v.): 1540s, "drive away," from Latin exterminatus, past participle of exterminare "drive out, expel, put aside, drive beyond boundaries," also, in Late Latin "destroy," from phrase ex termine "beyond the boundary," from ex- "out of" (see ex-) + termine, ablative of termen "boundary, limit, end" (see terminus).

Meaning "destroy utterly" is from 1640s in English, a sense found in equivalent words in French and in the Vulgate; earlier in this sense was extermine (mid-15c.). Related: Exterminated; exterminating.
extreme (adj.): early 15c., "outermost, farthest;" also "utter, total, in greatest degree" (opposed to moderate), from Old French extreme (13c.), from Latin extremus "outermost, utmost, farthest, last; the last part; extremity, boundary; highest or greatest degree," superlative of exterus (see exterior). In English as in Latin, not always felt as a superlative, hence more extreme, most extreme (which were condemned by Johnson). Extreme unction preserves the otherwise extinct sense of "last, latest" (15c.).
extrovert (n.): 1916, extravert (spelled with -o- after 1918, by influence of introvert), from German Extravert, from extra "outside" (see extra-) + Latin vertere "to turn" (see versus). Used (with introvert) in English by doctors and scientists in various literal senses since 1600s, but popularized in a psychological sense early 20c. by Carl Jung. Related: Extroverted.
freebooter (n.): 1560s, loan-translation of Dutch vrijbuiter "plunderer, robber," from vrijbuiten "to rob, plunder," from vrijbuit "plunder," literally "free booty," from vrij "free" (see free (adj.)) + buit "booty," from buiten "to exchange or plunder," from Middle Dutch buten, related to Middle Low German bute "exchange" (see booty).

The English word, Danish fribytter, Swedish fribytare, and German Freibeuter were formed on the model of the Dutch word, which is the source of filibuster (q.v.). The back-formed verb freeboot is recorded from 1590s. Related: Freebooting; freebootery.
freight (n.): early 15c. "transporting of goods and passengers by water," variant of fraght, which is from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German vracht, vrecht (see fraught). Danish fragt, Swedish frakt apparently also are from Dutch or Frisian. Also from Low German are Portuguese frete, Spanish flete, and French fret, which might have changed the vowel in this variant of the English word. Meaning "cargo of a ship" is from c. 1500. Freight-train is from 1841.
fritter (v.): "whittle away, waste bit by bit, spend on trifles," 1728, probably from noun fritter "fragment or shred" (though this is recorded later), perhaps an alteration of 16c. fitters "fragments or pieces," which is perhaps ultimately from Old French fraiture "a breaking," from Latin fractura [OED]. Or perhaps from a Germanic *fet-source (compare Middle High German vetze "clothes, rags," Old English fetel "girdle").
frizzle (v.): "curl hair," 1560s, of obscure origin. There are words of similar sound and sense in Old English (fris "curly"), Old Frisian (frisle), Middle French (friser "to curl") but their history is tangled; probably connected somehow to frizz (v.). Related: Frizzled; frizzling. As a noun from 1610s, "a short curl," from the verb. Frizzling iron was a 17c. term for "curling iron."
luminary (n.): mid-15c., "lamp, source of (artificial) light," from Old French luminarie (12c.), "lamp, lights, lighting; candles; brightness, illumination," from Late Latin luminare "light, torch, lamp, heavenly body," literally "that which gives light," from Latin lumen (genitive luminis) "light," related to lucere "to shine" (see light (n.)). Sense of "notable person" is first recorded 1690s, though the Middle English word also had a figurative sense of "source of spiritual light, example of holiness."
lump (n.): early 14c., lumpe (1224 as surname), probably in Old English, perhaps from a Scandinavian source (compare Danish lumpe, 16c.), of unknown origin. Compare also Middle High German lumpe, early modern Dutch lompe. Phrase lump in (one's) throat "feeling of tightness brought on by emotion" is from 1803. Lumps "hard knocks, a beating" is colloquial, from 1934. Lump sum, one covering a number of items, is from 1867.
lymph (n.): 1725 in physiology sense, "colorless fluid found in the body," from French lymphe, from Latin lympha "water, clear water, a goddess of water," variant of lumpæ "waters," altered by influence of Greek nymphe "goddess of a spring, nymph." The word was used earlier in English in the classical sense "pure water, water" (1620s), also (1670s) with reference to colorless fluids in plants. Also see lymphatic. Lymph node is attested from 1892.
Mercury: "the Roman god Mercury," mid-12c., from Latin Mercurius "Mercury," originally a god of tradesmen and thieves, from merx "merchandise" (see market (n.)); or perhaps [Klein, Tucker] from Etruscan and influenced by merx. Later he was associated with Greek Hermes. The planet closest to the sun so called in classical Latin (late 14c. in English). A hypothetical inhabitant of the planet was a Mercurean (1855) or a Mercurian (1868). For the metallic element, see mercury.
merry (adj.): Old English myrge "pleasing, agreeable, pleasant, sweet; pleasantly, melodiously," from Proto-Germanic *murgijaz, which probably originally meant "short-lasting," (compare Old High German murg "short," Gothic gamaurgjan "to shorten"), from PIE *mreghu- "short" (see brief (adj.)). The only exact cognate for meaning outside English was Middle Dutch mergelijc "joyful."

Connection to "pleasure" is likely via notion of "making time fly, that which makes the time seem to pass quickly" (compare German Kurzweil "pastime," literally "a short time;" Old Norse skemta "to amuse, entertain, amuse oneself," from skamt, neuter of skammr "short"). There also was a verbal form in Old English, myrgan "be merry, rejoice." For vowel evolution, see bury (v.).
Bot vchon enle we wolde were fyf, þe mo þe myryer. [c. 1300]
The word had much wider senses in Middle English, such as "pleasant-sounding" (of animal voices), "fine" (of weather), "handsome" (of dress), "pleasant-tasting" (of herbs). Merry-bout "an incident of sexual intercourse" was low slang from 1780. Merry-begot "illegitimate" (adj.), "bastard" (n.) is from 1785. Merrie England (now frequently satirical or ironic) is 14c. meri ingland, originally in a broader sense of "bountiful, prosperous." Merry Monday was a 16c. term for "the Monday before Shrove Tuesday" (Mardi Gras).
pile (n.3): "soft, raised surface upon cloth," mid-14c., "downy plumage," from Anglo-French pyle or Middle Dutch pijl, both from Latin pilus "a hair" (source of Italian pelo, Old French pel). Phonological evidence rules out transmission of the English word via Old French cognate peil, poil. Meaning "nap upon cloth" is from 1560s.
rhetoric (n.): early 14c., from Old French rethorique, from Latin rhetorice, from Greek rhetorike techne "art of an orator," from rhetor (genitive rhetoros) "speaker, orator, teacher of rhetoric," related to rhesis "speech," rhema "word, phrase, verb," literally "that which is spoken," from PIE *wre-tor-, from root *were- (3) "to speak" (source also of Old English word, Latin verbum, Greek eirein "to say;" see verb).
rhombus (n.): 1560s, from Late Latin rhombus, from Greek rhombos "rhombus, rhomb, lozenge; spinning top, maghic wheel used by sorcerers; a spinning motion," from rhembesthai "to spin, whirl," from PIE *wrembh-, from *werbh- "to turn, twist, bend" (source also of Old English weorpan "to throw away"), from root *wer- (3) "to turn, bend" (see versus).
rickets (n.): disease caused by vitamin D deficiency, 1630s, of uncertain origin. Originally a local name for the disease in Dorset and Somerset, England. Some derive it from a Dorset word, rucket "to breathe with difficulty," but the sense connection is difficult. The Modern Latin name for the disease, rachitis, comes from Greek rhakhis "spine" (see rachitic), but this was chosen by English physician Daniel Whistler (1619-1684) for resemblance to rickets.
rickshaw (n.): "small, two-wheeled carriage drawn by a man," 1885, shortened form of jinrikisha (1873), from Japanese jin "a man" + riki "power" + sha "carriage." The elements are said to be ultimately from Chinese. The full word first appears in English publications in Japan and was said to have been a recent innovation there. Kipling, whose ghost story helped popularize it, wrote it 'rickshaw.
rifle (v.1): "to plunder," early 14c. (implied in rifling), from Old French rifler "strip, filch, plunder, peel off (skin or bark), fleece," literally "to graze, scratch" (12c.), probably from a Germanic source (compare Old English geriflian "to wrinkle," Old High German riffilon "to tear by rubbing," Old Norse rifa "to tear, break"). Related: Rifled; rifling.
rigmarole (n.): 1736, "a long, rambling discourse," apparently from an altered, Kentish colloquial survival of ragman roll "long list or catalogue" (1520s), in Middle English a long roll of verses descriptive of personal characters, used in a medieval game of chance called Rageman, perhaps from Anglo-French Ragemon le bon "Ragemon the good," which was the heading on one set of the verses, referring to a character by that name. Sense transferred to "foolish activity or commotion" by 1939.
rill (n.): "small brook, rivulet," 1530s, from or related to Dutch and Frisian ril, Low German rille "groove, furrow, running stream," probably from Proto-Germanic *ril- (source also of Old English rið, riþe "brook, stream," which survives only in dialects), a diminutive form from PIE root *reie- "to run, flow" (see Rhine).
rim (n.): Old English rima "edge, border, verge, coast," as in særima "seashore," literally "rim of the sea," and dægrima "dawn," literally "rim of the day." Related to Old Norse rime, rimi "a raised strip of land, ridge," Old Frisian rim "edge," but with no other known cognates. The snare drummer's rim shot (striking the rim and the head at once) is recorded from 1934.
ring (n.1): "circular band," Old English hring "small circlet, especially one of metal for wearing on the finger or as part of a mail coat; anything circular," from Proto-Germanic *hringaz "something curved, circle" (source also of Old Norse hringr, Old Frisian hring, Danish, Swedish, Dutch ring, Old High German hring, German Ring), from PIE *(s)kregh- nasalized form of (s)kregh-, from root *(s)ker- (3) "to turn, bend," with wide-ranging derivative senses (source also of Latin curvus "bent, curved," crispus "curly;" Old Church Slavonic kragu "circle," and perhaps Greek kirkos "ring," koronos "curved").

Other Old English senses were "circular group of persons," also "horizon." Meaning "place for prize fight and wrestling bouts" (early 14c.) is from the space in a circle of bystanders in the midst of which such contests once were held, "... a circle formed for boxers, wrestlers, and cudgel players, by a man styled Vinegar; who, with his hat before his eyes, goes round the circle, striking at random with his whip to prevent the populace from crowding in" [Grose, 1785]. Meaning "combination of interested persons" is from 1829. Of trees, from 1670s; fairy ring is from 1620s. Ring finger is Old English hringfingr, a compound found in other Germanic languages. To run rings round (someone) "be superior to" is from 1891.

Nursery rhyme ring a ring a rosie is attested in an American form (with a different ending) from c. 1790. "The belief that the rhyme originated with the Great Plague is now almost universal, but has no evidence to support it and is almost certainly nonsense" ["Oxford Dictionary of English Folklore"]. This proposal of connection dates only to the late 1960s.
toadstool (n.): late 14c., apparently just what it looks like: a fanciful name from Middle English tadde "toad" (see toad) + stole "stool" (see stool). Toads themselves were regarded as highly poisonous, and this word is "popularly restricted to poisonous or inedible fungi, as distinct from edible "mushrooms" [OED]. Compare toad-cheese, a poisonous fungi; toad's meat (1886), a "rustic" term for toadstool.
toboggan (n.): "long, flat-bottomed sled," 1829, from Canadian French tabagane, from an Algonquian language, such as Maleseet /thapaken/. The verb is recorded from 1846. As American English colloquial for a type of long woolen cap, it is recorded from 1929 (earlier toboggan cap, 1928), presumably because one wore such a cap while tobogganing.
tocsin (n.): "alarm bell," 1580s, from Middle French toquassen "an alarm bell, the ringing of an alarm bell" (late 14c.), from Old Provençal tocasenh, from tocar "to strike" (from Vulgar Latin *toccare "strike a bell;" see touch (v.)) + senh "bell, bell note," from Late Latin signum "bell, ringing of a bell," in Latin "mark, signal" (see sign (n.)). The current English spelling is from 1794, adopted from modern French.
toddy (n.): 1610s, alteration of taddy (1610s), tarrie (c. 1600) "beverage made from fermented palm sap," from Hindi tari "palm sap" (in which the -r- sounds close to an English -d-), from tar "palm tree," from Sanskrit tala-s, probably from a Dravidian language (compare Kannada tar, Telugu tadu). Meaning "beverage made of alcoholic liquor with hot water, sugar, and spices" first recorded 1786.
toll (v.): "to sound with slow single strokes" (intransitive), mid-15c., probably a special use of tollen "to draw, lure," early 13c. variant of Old English -tyllan in betyllan "to lure, decoy," and fortyllan "draw away, seduce," of obscure origin. The notion is perhaps of "luring" people to church with the sound of the bells, or of "drawing" on the bell rope. Transitive sense from late 15c. Related: Tolled; tolling. The noun meaning "a stroke of a bell" is from mid-15c.
tor (n.): "high, rocky hill," Old English torr "rock, crag;" said to be a different word than torr "tower." Obviously cognate with Gaelic torr "lofty hill, mound," Old Welsh twrr "heap, pile;" and perhaps ultimately with Latin turris "high structure" (see tower (n.)). But sources disagree on whether the Celts borrowed it from the Anglo-Saxons or the other way round.