Online Etymology Dictionary

escalade (n.): 1590s, "action of using ladders to scale the walls of a fortified place," from Middle French escalade (16c.) "an assault with ladders on a fortification," from Italian scalata, fem. past participle of scalare "to climb by means of a ladder," from scala "ladder," related to Latin scandere "to climb" (see scan). For initial e-, see e-. Also in early use in English in Spanish form escalada, later corrupted to escalado. As the name of a brand of luxury SUV by Cadillac, from 1999.
sleave (v.): "to separate or divide" (threads, strands, fibers), Old English -slæfan, from stem of -slifan "to separate, split, cleave," from Proto-Germanic *slifanan, perhaps related to the root of slip (v.). Compare German Schleife "a loop, knot, noose." Related: Sleaved; sleaving. As a noun, "knotted, tangled silk or thread," 1590s, from the verb; this is the word in Shakespeare's rauel'd Sleeue of Care ("Macbeth").
sodomite (n.): late 14c., from Old French Sodomite "inhabitant of Sodom; sodomite," also a general term of abuse, or directly from Late Latin Sodomita, from Greek Sodomites "inhabitant of Sodom" (see Sodom, also sodomy). Related: Sodomitical. Old English had adjective sodomitisc. The King James Bible (1611) has fem. form sodomitesse in a marginal note to "whore" in Deut. xxiii:17.
something (pron.): Old English sum þinge; see some + thing. Hyphenated from c. 1300; one word from 17c. Formerly common as an adverb (as in something like). Meaning "some liquor, food, etc." is from 1570s. Meaning "a thing worthy of consideration" is from 1580s; emphatic form something else is from 1909. Phrase something for nothing is from 1816. To make something of is from 1778.
inflorescence (n.): 1760, "arrangement of flowers on a stem in relation to one another," from Modern Latin inflorescentia, from Late Latin inflorescentem (nominative inflorescens) "flowering," present participle of Latin inflorescere "to come to flower," from in- "in" (see in- (2)) + florescere "to begin to bloom" (see flourish (v.)). Meaning "a beginning to bloom" in English is from 1800.
seduction (n.): 1520s, from Middle French séduction, from Latin seductionem (nominative seductio), noun of action from past participle stem of seducere (see seduce). Originally with reference to actions or beliefs; sexual sense is from 1769, originally always with women as the objects. Earlier appearance of the word in Middle English with a sense "treason, treachery" probably is a confusion with sedition, which confusion also is found in Old French seducion "treason, betrayal."
selection (n.): 1620s, "act of selecting," from Latin selectionem (nominative selectio) "a choosing out, choice, selection," noun of action from past participle stem of seligere (see select (adj.)). Meaning "thing selected" is from 1805. Biological sense is from 1837; applied to actions of breeders (methodical selection), hence its use by Darwin (natural selection; 1857). French sélection is a 19c. borrowing from English.
senator (n.): c. 1200, "member of an (ancient) senate," from Old French senator (Modern French sénateur), from Latin senator "member of the senate," from senex "old; old man" (see senate). An Old English word for one was folcwita. As "member of a (modern) governing body" from late 14c.; specifically in U.S. use from 1788. Fem. form senatress attested from 1731. The Senators was the name of the professional baseball team in Washington, D.C., from 1891 to 1971.
ictus (n.): rhythmical or metrical stress, 1752, from Latin ictus "a blow, stroke, thrust;" of voices "a beat, impulse, stress," from icere (past participle ictus) "to strike, hit," which is related to iacere "to throw" (see jet (v.)). Reckoned in Anglo-Saxon poetry; in Modern English it generally is identical to syllabic stress or accent.
Italianate (adj.): 1570s, from Italian Italianato "rendered Italian," from Italiano (see Italian). In older use "applied especially to fantastic affectations of fashions borrowed from Italy" [Century Dictionary], or in reference to the supposed Italian proverb that translates as an Englishman Italianate is a Devil incarnate which circulated in English (there also was a version in Germany about Italianized Germans).
papillon (n.): 1907, as a breed of dog, from French papillon, literally "butterfly," from Latin papilionem (nominative papilio) "butterfly," perhaps from a reduplicated form of PIE root *pal- "to touch, feel, shake."

The Latin word is cognate with Old English fifealde "butterfly," Old Saxon fifoldara, Old Norse fifrildi, Old High German vivaltra, German Falter. The dog so called for the shape of the ears.
profiteer (v.): 1797, but dormant in English until it was revived in World War I, from profit + -eer. From 1912 as a noun. Related: Profiteering (1814).
Or is it simply hysteria which produces what is to-day termed "the profiteer?" It is probable that the modern profiteer is the same person whom we formerly called "the grafter, the extortioner, the robber, the gouger." ["Legal Aid Review," April 1920]
newbie (n.): "newcomer, new person to an existing situation," by 1969, from new with diminutive or derogatory suffix. Perhaps originally U.S. military slang. Compare noob. Middle English had newing "a new thing" (early 15c.); new was used as a noun meaning "naval cadet during first training on a ship" (1909); and newie "new thing" is recorded from 1947.
northern (adj.): Old English norþerna, norðerne "northern, Northumbrian, Scandinavian," cognate with Old High German nordroni, Old Norse norroenn (see north). With -erne, suffix denoting direction. Related: Northernmost. Northerner in U.S. geo-political sense is attested from 1831. Northern lights "aurora borealis" first recorded by that name 1721 (earlier north-light, 1706).
prisoner (n.): "person in prison, captive person," late 14c. (earlier "a jailer," mid-13c., but this did not survive Middle English), from Old French prisonier "captive, hostage" (12c., Modern French prisonnier), from prisoun (see prison (n.)). Captives taken in war have been called prisoners since mid-14c.; phrase prisoner of war dates from 1670s (see also POW). Prisoner's dilemma attested from 1957.
Cyprian (adj.): 1620s, "of Cyprus," from Latin Cyprianus, from Cyprius, from Greek Kyprios (see Cyprus). The island was famous in ancient times as the birthplace of Aphrodite and for erotic worship rituals offered to her there; hence Cyprian meant "licentious, lewd," the earliest attested sense in English (1590s) and was applied 18c.-19c. to prostitutes.
sublimate (v.): 1590s, "raise to a high place," back-formation from sublimation or else from Medieval Latin sublimatus, past participle of sublimare "to lift up." The word was used in English from 1560s as a past participle adjective meaning "purified, refined by sublimation." Chemical/alchemical sense of "heat a solid into vapor and allow it to cool again" as a way of extracting a pure substance from dross is from c. 1600. Related: Sublimated; sublimating. As a noun from 1620s.
subtlety (n.): c. 1300, sotilte, "skill, ingenuity," from Old French sotilte "skillfulness, cunning" (Modern French subtilité), from Latin subtilitatem (nominative subtilitas) "fineness; simplicity, slenderness," noun of quality from subtilis "fine, thin, delicate" (see subtle). From late 14c. as "cleverness, shrewdness; trickery, guile, craftiness," also "thinness, slenderness, smallness; rarity." The -b- begins to appear late 14c. in English, in imitation of Latin.
susurrus (n.): 1809, earlier as a medical Latin word in English, from Latin susurrus, literally "a humming, muttering, whispering" (see susurration).
Among the diseases of the ear, one of the most prevalent is the Paracusis imaginaria, to which both sexes are equally liable; and another variety of the same tribe, more frequent among female patients, called the Susurrus criticus, or Scandal-buzz. ["The Lounger," Dec. 23, 1786]
synoptic (adj.): 1763, "pertaining to synopsis," from Modern Latin synopticus, from Late Latin synopsis (see synopsis). Greek synoptikos meant "taking a general or comprehensive view," and the sense "affording a general view" in English emerged by mid-19c. Specifically of the first three Gospels from 1841, on notion of "giving an account of events from the same point of view." Related Synoptical (1660s).
faint (v.): c. 1300, "grow weak, become enfeebled," also "lack courage or spirit, be faint-hearted," and "to pretend, feign;" from faint (adj.). Sense of "swoon, lose consciousness" is from c. 1400. Also used in Middle English of the fading of colors, flowers, etc. Related: Fainted; fainting. For Chaucer and Shakespeare, also a transitive verb ("It faints me").
falcate (adj.): "hooked, curved like a scythe or sickle," 1801, from Latin falcatus "sickle-shaped, hooked, curved," from falcem (nominative falx) "sickle," which is of uncertain origin, perhaps a borrowing from a non-Latin Indo-European language of Italy. De Vaan lists cognates as Old Irish delg "thorn, pin," Welsh dala "sting," Lithuanian dilge "nettle," Old Norse dalkr "pin, spine, dagger," Old English delg "clasp." Related: Falcated; falcation; falciform (1766).
fell (n.2): "skin or hide of an animal," Old English fel "skin, hide, garment of skin," from Proto-Germanic *felnam- (source also of Old Frisian fel, Old Saxon fel, Dutch vel, Old High German fel, German fell, Old Norse fiall, Gothic fill "skin, hide"), from PIE *pel-no-, suffixed form of root *pel- (4) "skin, hide" (see film (n.)). Related: Fellmonger.
braid (n.): in part from stem found in Old English gebrægd "craft, fraud," gebregd "commotion," Old Norse bragð "deed, trick," and in part from or influenced by related braid (v.). Earliest senses are "a deceit, stratagem, trick" (c. 1200), "sudden or quick movement" (c. 1300); meaning "anything plaited or entwined" (especially hair) is from 1520s.
broad (n.): "woman," slang, 1911, perhaps suggestive of broad (adj.) hips, but it also might trace to American English abroadwife, word for a woman (often a slave) away from her husband. Earliest use of the slang word suggests immorality or coarse, low-class women. Because of this negative association, and the rise of women's athletics, the track and field broad jump was changed to the long jump c. 1967.
engineer (v.): 1818, "act as an engineer," from engineer (n.). Figurative sense of "arrange, contrive, guide or manage (via ingenuity or tact)" is attested from 1864, originally in a political context. Related: Engineered. Middle English had a verb engine "contrive, construct" (late 14c.), also "seduce, trick, deceive" (c. 1300) and "put to torture."
book (v.): Old English bocian "to grant or assign by charter," from book (n.). Meaning "to enter into a book, record" is early 13c. Meaning "to enter for a seat or place, issue (railway) tickets" is from 1841; "to engage a performer as a guest" is from 1872. U.S. student slang meaning "to depart hastily, go fast" is by early 1980s, of uncertain signification. Related: Booked; booking.
known (adj.): mid-13c., knouen, "well-known, famous, notorious," past participle adjective from know (v.). From early 14c. as "recognized, not secret; familiar, not strange." As a noun, "that which is known," by 1863; earlier "famous person" (1835). In Middle English it meant "one's acquaintances." To make (something) known is from mid-14c.
chalk (v.): 1570s, "to mix with chalk;" 1590s as "to mark with chalk," from chalk (n.). Related: Chalked; chalking. Old English had cealcian "to whiten." Certain chalk marks on shipped objects meant "admitted" or "shipped free," hence some figurative senses. Chalk boards also were commonly used in keeping credit, score, etc., hence figurative use of chalk it up (1903).
sulfurous (adj.): 1520s, "containing or resembling sulfur, of the nature of brimstone," from Latin sulphurosus "full of sulfur," or a native formation from sulfur + -ous. Hence figurative use with suggestions of hellfire (c. 1600). Scientific chemistry sense is from 1790. The spelling with -ph- is standard in Britain. Earlier in the "brimstone-like" sense was sulphureose (early 15c.), and Old English had sweflen. Related: Sulfurously; sulphurously; sulfurousness.
spare (adj.): "kept in reserve, not used, provided or held for extra need," late 14c., from or from the same root as spare (v.). Old English had spær "sparing, frugal." Also compare Old Norse sparr "(to be) spared." In reference to time, from mid-15c.; sense of "lacking in substance; lean, gaunt; flimsy, thin; poor," is recorded from 1540s. Spare part is attested from 1888. Spare tire is from 1894 of bicycles; 1903 of automobiles; 1961 of waistlines.
gag (n.1): "something thrust into the mouth or throat to prevent speaking," 1550s, from gag (v.); figurative use, "violent or authoritative repression of speech," is from 1620s. Gag-law in reference to curbs on freedom of the press is from 1798, American English. The gag-rule that blocked anti-slavery petitions in the U.S. House of Representatives was in force from 1836 to 1844.
pain (v.): c. 1300, "to exert or strain oneself, strive; endeavor," from Old French pener (v.) "to hurt, cause pain," from peine, and from Middle English peine (n.); see pain (n.). Transitive meaning "cause pain; inflict pain" is from late 14c. That of "to cause sorrow, grief, or unhappiness" also is from late 14c. Related: Pained; paining.
miss (n.1): late 12c., "loss, lack; " c. 1200, "regret occasioned by loss or absence," from Old English miss "absence, loss," from source of missan "to miss" (see miss (v.)). Meaning "an act or fact of missing; a being without" is from late 15c.; meaning "a failure to hit or attain" is 1550s. To give something a miss "to abstain from, avoid" is from 1919. Phrase a miss is as good as a mile was originally, an inch, in a miss, is as good as an ell (see ell).
nail (v.): Old English næglian "to fasten with nails," from Proto-Germanic *ganaglijan (source also of Old Saxon neglian, Old Norse negla, Old High German negilen, German nageln, Gothic ganagljan "to nail"), from the root of nail (n.). Related: Nailed; nailing. Meaning "to catch, seize" is first recorded 1766, probably from earlier sense "to keep fixed in a certain position" (1610s). Meaning "to succeed in hitting" is from 1886. To nail down "to fix down with nails" is from 1660s.
whistle (n.): "tubular musical instrument sounded by blowing," Old English hwistle (see whistle (v.)). Meaning "sound formed by pursing the lips and blowing" is from mid-15c. To wet one's whistle "take a drink" (late 14c.) originally may have referred to pipes, or be an allusion to the throat as a sort of pipe. Phrase clean as a whistle is recorded from 1878. Railroad whistle-stop (at which trains stop only if the engineer hears a signal from the station) is recorded from 1934.
merestone (n.): "stone serving as a landmark," Old English mærstan "boundary stone," from mære "boundary, object indicating a boundary," from Proto-Germanic *mairjo- (source also of Middle Dutch mere "boundary mark, stake," Old Norse -mæri "boundary, border-land"), related to Latin murus "wall" (see mural). Hence also meresman "man appointed to find boundaries" (of a parish, etc.).
natural (n.): "person with a natural gift or talent," 1925, originally in prizefighting, from natural (adj.). In Middle English, the word as a noun meant "natural capacity, physical ability or power" (early 14c.), and it was common in sense "a native of a place" in Shakespeare's day. Also in 17c., "a mistress."
mess (v.): late 14c., "serve up in portions," from mess (n.). Meaning "take one's meals" is from 1701; that of "make a mess" is from 1853. Related: Messed; messing. To mess with "interfere, get involved" is from 1903; mess up "make a mistake, get in trouble" is from 1933 (earlier "make a mess of," 1909), both originally American English colloquial.
slack (v.): 1510s, "to moderate, make slack," back-formed from slack (adj.) after the original verb veered into the specialized sense of slake. Meaning "be remiss, inactive or idle, fail to exert oneself" is attested from 1540s; current use is probably a re-coining from c. 1904 (see slacker, and compare Old English slacful "lazy," sleacmodnes "laziness"). Related: Slacked; slacking.
monkey-shines (n.): also monkeyshines, "monkeyish behavior, tricks, antics," 1832 (in the "Jim Crow" song), from monkey (n.) + shine (n.) "a caper, trick" (1835), from an American English slang sense perhaps related to the expression cut a shine "make a fine impression" (1819); see slang senses under shine (n.). For sense of the whole word, compare Old French singerie "disreputable behavior," from singe "monkey, ape."
substitute (n.): "one who acts in place of another," early 15c., from Middle French substitut (noun use) and directly from Latin substitutus, past participle of substituere "put in place of another" (see substitution). Military draft sense is from 1777, American English. Team sports sense is from 1849. Of foodstuffs, from 1879. As an adjective from early 15c.
creep (n.): "a creeping motion," 1818, from creep (v.). Meaning "despicable person" is 1935, American English slang, perhaps from earlier sense of "sneak thief" (1914). Creeper "a gilded rascal" is recorded from c. 1600, and the word also was used of certain classes of thieves, especially those who robbed customers in brothels. The creeps "a feeling of dread or revulsion" first attested 1849, in Dickens.
automobile (n.): "self-propelled motor vehicle," 1895, from French automobile, short for véhicule automobile (see automobile (adj.)). The modern Greek calls it autokineto "moved of itself." The French word had competition in the early years from locomobile; in English other early forms were motorcar and autocar. An electrical car was an electromobile (1899).
plant (v.): "put in the ground to grow," Old English plantian, from Latin plantare (see plant (n.)). Reinforced by cognate Old French planter. Without reference to growing, "to insert firmly," late 14c. Of colonies from c. 1300. Figuratively, of ideas, etc., from early 15c. Meaning "to bury" is U.S. slang from U.S., 1855. Related: Planted; planting.
coast (v.): late 14c., "to skirt, to go around the sides, to go along the border" of something (as a ship does the coastline), from Anglo-French costien, from the French source of coast (n.). The meaning "sled downhill," first attested 1775 in American English, is a separate borrowing. Of motor vehicles, "to move without thrust from the engine," by 1925; figurative use, of persons, "not to exert oneself," by 1934. Related: Coasted; coasting.
writing (n.): Old English writing "action of forming letters and characters," verbal noun from write (v.). From c. 1200 as "text; body of poetry, narrative, etc. in written form; written material." From c. 1300 as "a particular text;" mid-14c. as "act of composing a written text." From late 14c. as "craft of writing;" also "one's own handwriting or penmanship." Also late 14c. as "act of sending a letter; a letter, message." Writing-desk is from 1610s.
dye (v.): Old English deagian "to dye," from the source of dye (n.). Spelling distinction between dye and die was not firm till 19c. "Johnson in his Dictionary, spelled them both die, while Addison, his near contemporary, spelled both dye" [Barnhart]. Related: dyed. For dyed in the wool (or grain) see wool (n.).
hector (v.): "to bluster, bully, domineer," 1650s, from slang hector (n.) "a blustering, turbulent, pervicacious, noisy fellow" [Johnson], 1650s, from Hector of the "Iliad," in reference to his encouragement of his fellow Trojans to keep up the fight. Earlier in English the name was used generically for "a valiant warrior" (late 14c.). Related: Hectored; hectoring.
swing (n.): Old English swinge "stroke, blow; chastisement," from swing (v.). Meaning "suspended seat on ropes" is from 1680s. Meaning "shift of public opinion" is from 1899. The meaning "variety of big dance-band music with a swinging rhythm" is first recorded 1933, though the sense has been traced back to 1888; its heyday was from mid-30s to mid-40s. Phrase in full swing "in total effect or operation" (1560s) perhaps is from bell-ringing. The backyard or playground swing-set is from 1951.