英语词源字典 - 在线词源网站

snell (adj.)[snell 词源字典]: Old English snel "quick, active," cognate with Old Saxon, Dutch, Old High German snel, German schnell "swift, quick," Old Danish snel "swift, fleet," Old Norse snjallr "eloquent, able, bold." It survived as a surname and in Scottish and northern English; used by Burns and Scott. Italian snello is from Germanic.[snell etymology, snell origin, 英语词源]
snick (n.): 1962, American English, from common pronunciation of SNCC, initialism (acronym) for "Student Non-violent Co-ordinating Committee," black civil rights organization.
snick (v.): "cut, clip, snip," c. 1700, back-formation from snickersnee.
snicker (v.): "laugh in a half-suppressed way," 1690s, possibly of imitative origin, similar to Dutch snikken "to gasp, sob." Related: Snickered; snickering.
snicker (n.): "a smothered laugh," 1835, from snicker (v.).
snickersnee (n.): 1690s, originally "fight with knives," from snick-or-snee (1610s), from Dutch steken "to thrust, stick" + snijden "to cut" (compare German schneiden; see schnitzel).
snide (adj.): 1859, thieves' slang, "counterfeit, sham, bad, spurious," of unknown origin. Of persons, "cunning, sharp," from 1883. Sense of "sneering" is first attested 1933, perhaps via sense of "hypocrisy, malicious gossip" (1902). Related: Sneeringly.
sniff (v.): mid-14c., of imitative origin; possibly related to snyvelen (see snivel). As an expression of scorn or contempt from 1729. As a synonym for smell (v.) it dates from 1845. In reference to cocaine from 1925. Related: Sniffed; sniffing.
sniff (n.): 1767, from sniff (v.); the scornful sense is from 1859.
sniffer (n.): "the nose," 1858, agent noun from sniff (v.).
sniffle (v.): 1819, frequentative form of sniff (v.). Related: Sniffled; sniffling. The sniffles "runny nose, head cold" is recorded from 1825. Sniffly (1897) tends to refer to physical symptoms, while sniffy (1858) means "scornful, disdainful and disagreeable." Snuffy "annoyed" is from 1670s.
snifter (n.): 1844, "a drink of liquor," earlier "a sniff," from a Scottish and northern English survival of an obsolete verb snift meaning "to sniff, snivel" (mid-14c.), of imitative origin (compare sniff (v.)). Meaning "large bulbous stemmed glass for drinking brandy" is from 1937. The association of "drinking liquor" with words for "inhaling, snuffling" (such as snort (n.), snootful) is perhaps borrowed from snuff-taking and the nasal reaction to it.
snigger (v.): 1706, variant form of snicker (v.). Related: Sniggered; sniggering. As a noun from 1823.
sniggler (n.): 1840, in reference to fishing (especially for eels), agent noun from sniggle (v.) attested in this sense from 1670s, with verbal suffix -le + snig "an eel" (late 15c.), of obscure origin, but perhaps related to snake (n.), sneak (v.).
snip (n.): 1550s, "small piece of cut-out cloth," probably from Dutch or Low German snippen "to snip, shred," of imitative origin. Meaning "cut made by scissors" is from 1590s. As a nickname or cant word for a tailor, 1590s. Snip-snap-snorum, the card game, is 1755, from Low German.
snip (v.): "to cut at one light, quick stroke," 1580s, from snip (n.). Related: Snipped; snipping.
snipe (v.): "shoot from a hidden place," 1773 (among British soldiers in India), in reference to hunting snipe as game, from snipe (n.). Figurative use from 1892. Related: Sniped; sniping.
snipe (n.): long-billed marsh bird, early 14c., from Old Norse -snipa in myrisnipa "moor snipe;" perhaps a common Germanic term (compare Old Saxon sneppa, Middle Dutch snippe, Dutch snip, Old High German snepfa, German Schnepfe "snipe," Swedish snäppa "sandpiper"), perhaps originally "snipper." The Old English name was snite, which is of uncertain derivation. An opprobrious term (see guttersnipe) since c. 1600.
sniper (n.): "sharpshooter; one who shoots from a hidden place," 1824, agent noun from snipe (v.). The birds were considered a challenging target for an expert shooter:
Snipe Shooting is a good trial of the gunner's skill, who often engages in this diversion, without the assistance of a dog of any kind; a steady pointer, however, is a good companion. ["Sportsman's Calendar," London, December 1818]
snippers (n.): "scissors," 1590s, plural agent noun from snip (v.).