英语词源字典 - 在线词源网站

banyan: banyan: [17] Banyan originally meant ‘Hindu trader’. It is an arabization of Gujarati vāniyān ‘traders’, which comes ultimately from Sanskrit vanija ‘merchant’ (the Portuguese version, banian, produced an alternative English spelling). When European travellers first visited Bandar Abbas, a port on the Persian Gulf, they found there a pagoda which the banyans had built in the shade of a large Indian fig tree. They immediately applied the name banyan to this particular tree, and the term later widened to include all such trees.
dryad: dryad: see tree
hyacinth: hyacinth: [16] Greek huákinthos denoted a plant with deep red flowers which according to legend sprang from the blood of Hyacinthus, a beautiful youth whom Apollo loved but accidentally killed. It probably came from some pre-Hellenic Mediterranean language, and was remodelled in Greek on the basis of Hyacinthus’s name. It is not clear what sort of plant the original hyacinth was, but by the time the word reached English (via Latin hyacinthus and French hyacinthe) it had been adopted for the bluebell and its immediate relatives.

Greek huákinthos was also used for a variety of precious stone, probably originally the sapphire. This meaning too followed the word into English, but is now little used, having been taken over by jacinth [13] – itself a descendant of Latin hyacinthus.
=> jacinth
loyal: loyal: [16] Loyal, ultimately the same word as legal, has a double history in English. It was originally acquired in the 13th century as leal. This came from Anglo-Norman leal, a descendant of Latin lēgālis ‘legal’. Then in the 16th century it was reborrowed from the modern French form loyal. The semantic link is ‘faithfully carrying out (legal) obligations’.
=> legal
royal: royal: [14] Royal and regal are ultimately the same word. Both go back to the Latin adjective rēgālis, a derivative of rēx ‘king’. But whereas regal was probably borrowed direct from Latin, royal was acquired via Old French, where rēgālis became roial.
=> regal
voyage: voyage: [13] Voyage goes back ultimately to Latin via ‘way’ (source also of the English preposition via [18]). From it was derived viāticum, which originally meant ‘provisions for a journey’, but in post-classical times was used for simply ‘journey’. English acquired it via Old French veiyage and Anglo-Norman voiage.
=> via
yacht: yacht: [16] A yacht is etymologically a boat for ‘chasing’ others. The word was borrowed from early modern Dutch jaghte. This was short for jaghtschip, literally ‘chase ship’, a compound noun formed from jaght, a derivative of the verb jagen ‘hunt, chase’, and schip ‘ship’. The Dutch word (whose present-day form is jacht) has been borrowed into many other European languages, including French and German jacht and Russian jakhta.
Yankee: Yankee: [17] Yankee appears to have started life as a nickname for Dutchmen, and it is thought that it may represent Dutch Janke, a diminutive form of the common Dutch forename Jan. It was first used as a term for inhabitants of New England (where of course there were many early Dutch settlers) in the mid-18th century, and its application gradually spread to cover all the northern states and (more loosely, by non- American speakers) the whole of the USA.
yard: yard: Yard ‘enclosed area’ [OE] and yard ‘three feet’ [OE] are distinct words, both of ancient ancestry. The former probably goes back ultimately to Indo-European *ghorto-, which also produced Latin cohors ‘court’ (source of English cohort and court) and hortus ‘garden’ (source of English horticulture) and Russian gorod ‘town’ (as in Leningrad).

Its prehistoric Germanic descendant was *gard-, which, as well as providing English with yard, has produced garden, garth [14] (via Old Norse), and the second syllable of orchard. Yard ‘three feet’ originally meant ‘stick, rod’ (a sense preserved nautically, as in yardarm [16]). It goes back ultimately to prehistoric Germanic *gazdaz ‘pointed stick’ (source of the gad of gadfly [16], etymologically the fly with the ‘sting’).

From this was derived West Germanic *gazdjō, which evolved into German gerte ‘sapling, riding cane’, Dutch gard ‘twig, rod’, and English yard. The Anglo-Saxons used the term as a unit of measurement of land, equal to about five metres (what later became known as a rod, pole, or perch), but its modern use for ‘three feet’ did not emerge until the 14th century.
=> cohort, court, garden, garth, horticulture, orchard; gadfly
yarn: yarn: [OE] Yarn comes from prehistoric Germanic *garn-, which also produced German, Swedish, and Danish garn and Dutch garen. This in turn went back to an Indo-European base whose other descendants include Greek khordé ‘string’ (source of English chord, cord). The sailors’ expression spin a yarn ‘tell a story’ led in the 19th century to the use of yarn for ‘story, tale’.
=> chord, cord
yawn: yawn: [OE] Yawn goes back ultimately to the Indo-European base *ghei-, *ghi-, which also produced Greek kháskein ‘gape’ (a close relative of English chasm [17]) and Latin hiāre ‘gape, yawn’ (source of English hiatus [16]). The base passed into prehistoric Germanic as *gai-, *gi-, whose surviving descendants are German gähnen, Dutch geeuwen, and English yawn. English gap and gape probably come from an extension of the same Indo-European base.
=> chasm, gap, gape, hiatus
abeyance (n.): 1520s, from Anglo-French abeiance "suspension," also "expectation (especially in a lawsuit)," from Old French abeance "aspiration, desire," noun of condition of abeer "aspire after, gape" from à "at" (see ad-) + ba(y)er "be open," from Latin *batare "to yawn, gape" (see abash).

Originally in French a legal term, "condition of a person in expectation or hope of receiving property;" it turned around in English law to mean "condition of property temporarily without an owner" (1650s). Root baer is also the source of English bay (n.2) "recessed space," as in "bay window."
annoyance (n.): late 14c., "act of annoying," from Old French enoiance "ill-humor, irritation," from anuiant, present participle of anuier "to be troublesome, annoy, harass" (see annoy). Meaning "state of being annoyed" is from c. 1500. Earlier, annoying was used in the sense of "act of offending" (c. 1300), and a noun annoy (c. 1200) in a sense "feeling of irritation, displeasure, distaste."
Aryan: c. 1600, as a term in classical history, from Latin Arianus, Ariana, from Greek Aria, Areia, names applied in classical times to the eastern part of ancient Persia and to its inhabitants. Ancient Persians used the name in reference to themselves (Old Persian ariya-), hence Iran. Ultimately from Sanskrit arya- "compatriot;" in later language "noble, of good family."

Also the name Sanskrit-speaking invaders of India gave themselves in the ancient texts, from which early 19c. European philologists (Friedrich Schlegel, 1819, who linked the word with German Ehre "honor") applied it to the ancient people we now call Indo-Europeans (suspecting that this is what they called themselves); this use is attested in English from 1851. The term fell into the hands of racists, and in German from 1845 it was specifically contrasted to Semitic (Lassen).

German philologist Max Müller (1823-1900) popularized the term in his writings on comparative linguistics, recommending it as the name (replacing Indo-European, Indo-Germanic, Caucasian, Jshortened) for the group of related, inflected languages connected with these peoples, mostly found in Europe but also including Sanskrit and Persian. Arian was used in this sense from 1839 (and is more philologically correct), but this spelling caused confusion with Arian, the term in ecclesiastical history.

Gradually replaced in comparative linguistics c. 1900 by Indo-European, except when used to distinguish Indo-European languages of India from non-Indo-European ones. Used in Nazi ideology to mean "member of a Caucasian Gentile race of Nordic type." As an ethnic designation, however, it is properly limited to Indo-Iranians (most justly to the latter) and has fallen from general academic use since the Nazi era.
Aryanism (n.): 1888, "characteristic Aryan principles," from Aryan + -ism. As a belief in cultural or racial superiority of Aryans, from 1905.
Astyanax: son of Hector and Andromache ("Iliad"), Greek, literally "lord of the city," from asty "city" (see asteism) + anax "chief, lord, master." Also the epithet of certain gods.
ayah (n.): "native nurse, children's governess," Anglo-Indian, 1782, from Portuguese aia, cognate with Spanish aya, Italian aja, etc., "nurse," from Latin avia "grandmother," fem. of avus "grandfather" (see uncle).
ayatollah (n.): honorific title for an Iranian Shiite religious leader, 1950, from Persian, from Arabic ayatu-llah, literally "miraculous sign of God."
backyard (n.): also back-yard, 1650s (perhaps early 15c.), from back (adj.) + yard (n.1).
banyan (n.): "Indian fig tree," 1630s, so called in reference to a tree on the Iranian coast of the Persian Gulf under which the Hindu merchants known as banians had built a pagoda. From Sanskrit vanija "merchant."
barnyard (n.): 1510s, from barn + yard (n.1). Figurative of coarse or uncivilized behavior from 1920.
Bayard (n.): generic or mock-heroic name for a horse, mid-14c., from Old French Baiard, name of the bay-colored magic steed given by Charlemagne to Renaud in the legends, from Old French baiart "bay-colored" (see bay (adj.)). Also by early 14c. proverbial as a blind person or thing, for now-unknown reasons. The name later was used attributively of gentlemen of courage and integrity, in this sense from Pierre du Terrail, seigneur de Bayard (1473-1524), French knight celebrated as Chevalier sans peur et sans reproche. The surname is perhaps in reference to hair color.
bellyache (n.): also belly-ache, 1590s, from belly (n.) + ache (n.). The verb in the slang sense of "complain" is first recorded 1888, American English; it appears not to have been used earlier than that, if ever, in a literal sense. Related: bellyached; bellyaching.
betrayal (n.): 1816; from betray + -al (2). Earlier in the same sense were betrayment (1540s), betraying (late 14c.).
bon voyage: 1670s, French, "pleasant journey," from bon "good," (see bon) + voyage (see voyage (n.)).
boo-ya: also booyah, exclamation used in various situations, first attested c. 1990 in hip-hop slang.
boyar (n.): member of a Russian aristocratic class (abolished by Peter the Great), 1590s, from Russian boyarin, perhaps from boji "struggle," or from Slavic root *bol- "great."
buoyance (n.): 1821, from buoyant + -ance.
buoyancy (n.): 1713, from buoyant + -cy. Figurative sense (of spirits, etc.) is from 1819.
buoyant (adj.): 1570s, perhaps from Spanish boyante, present participle of boyar "to float," from boya "buoy," from Dutch boei (see buoy (n.)). Of personalities, etc., from c. 1748. Related: Buoyantly.
candyass: also candy-ass, 1961, from candy (n.) + ass (n.2). Perhaps originally U.S. military.
caryatid (n.): "carved female figure used as a column," 1560s, from Middle French cariatide, from Latin caryatides, from Greek Karyatides (singular Karyatis) "priestesses of Artemis at Caryae" (Greek Karyai), a town in Laconia where dance festivals were held in Artemis' temple. Male figures in a like situation are Atlantes, plural of Atlas.
churchyard (n.): early 12c., from church + yard (n.1).
clairvoyance (n.): "paranormal gift of seeing things out of sight," 1837, from special use of French clairvoyance (Old French clerveans, 13c.) "quickness of understanding, sagacity, penetration," from clairvoyant (see clairvoyant). A secondary sense in French is the main sense in English.
clairvoyant (n.): 1834 in the psychic sense; see clairvoyant (adj.). Earlier it was used in the sense "clear-sighted person" (1794). Fem. form was Clairvoyante.
clairvoyant (adj.): "having psychic gifts," 1837, earlier "having insight" (1670s), from special use of French clairvoyant "clear-sighted, discerning, judicious" (13c.), from clair (see clear (adj.)) + voyant "seeing," present participle of voir, from Latin videre "to see" (see vision).
conveyance (n.): mid-15c., "act of conveying," from convey + -ance. Meaning "document by which something is legally conveyed" is from 1570s; sense "means of transportation" is attested from 1590s. Related: Conveyanced; conveyancing.
courtyard (n.): 1550s, from court (n.) + yard (n.1).
cyan (n.): 1889, short for cyan blue (1879), from Greek kyanos "dark blue, dark blue enamel, lapis lazuli," probably a non-Indo-European word, but perhaps akin to, or from, Hittite *kuwanna(n)- "copper blue."
cyanide (n.): a salt of hydrocyanic acid, 1826, coined from cyan-, comb. form for carbon and nitrogen compounds, from Greek kyanos "dark blue" (see cyan) + chemical ending -ide, on analogy of chloride. So called because it first had been obtained by heating the dye pigment powder known as Prussian blue (see Prussian).
cyanosis (n.): "blue disease," the "blue jaundice" of the ancients, 1820, Medical Latin, from Greek kyanosis, from kyanos "dark blue color" (see cyan) + -osis.
cyanotic (adj.): 1833, from comb. form of root of cyanosis + -ic.
disloyal (adj.): early 15c. (implied in disloyally), from Old French desloial, desleal (Modern French déloyal) "treacherous, false, deceitful," from des- (see dis-) + loial (see loyal).
disloyalty (n.): early 15c., from Middle French desloyaulte, from Old French desloiaute, desleauté "disloyalty, faithlessness, marital infidelity," from desloial (see disloyal). Especially of allegiance to a state or sovereign since c. 1600.
dooryard (n.): c. 1764, American English, from door + yard (n.1).
drayage (n.): 1791, "conveyance by dray," from dray + -age. Later also in reference to the fee for such.
dryad (n.): 1550s, from Latin dryas, from Greek dryas (plural dryades) "wood nymph," from drus (genitive dryos) "oak," from PIE *deru- "tree, wood, oak" (see tree (n.)).
dyad (n.): 1670s, from Latin dyad-, stem of dyas, from Greek dyas "the number two, a group of two," from duo "two" (see two). Specific sense in chemistry ("a bivalent element") is by 1865; also used in biology, poetics, mathematics. Related: Dyadic.
enjoyable (adj.): 1640s, "capable of being enjoyed," from enjoy + -able. Meaning "affording pleasure" is from 1744. Related: Enjoyably; enjoyableness.
fibromyalgia (n.): 1981, said to have been coined by U.S. rheumatologist Mohammed Yunus, from Latin fibra "a fiber, filament" (see fiber) + Greek mys (genitive myos) "muscle" (see muscle (n.)) + -algia "pain." The earlier name for the condition was fibrositis.