Online Etymology Dictionary

bubo: late 14c., pl. buboes, from L.L. bubo (gen. bubonis) "swelling of lymph glands" (in the groin), from Gk. boubon "the groin, swelling in the groin" + -ic.
bubonic: "characterized by swelling in the groin," 1871, from L. bubo (gen. bubonis) "swelling of lymph glands" (in the groin), from Gk. boubon "groin."
buccal: "pertaining to the cheek," 1831, from L. bucca "cheek," especially when puffed out (later "mouth").
buccaneer: 1660s, from Fr. boucanier "user of a boucan," a native grill for roasting meat, from Tupi mukem (rendered in Port. as moquem c.1587): "initial b and m are interchangeable in the Tupi language" [Klein]. For Haitian variant barbacoa, see barbecue. Originally used of French settlers working as hunters and woodsmen in the Spanish West Indies, a lawless and piratical set after they were driven from their trade by Spanish authorities in the 1690s.
Bucephalus: Alexander the Great's favorite horse, from Gk. Boukephalos, lit. "Ox-head," from bous "ox" + kephale "head."
"Men called [him] Bucephalus ... of the marke or brand of a buls head, which was imprinted vpon his shoulder." [Pliny, I.220, tr. Holland, 1601]
buck (n.1): "male deer," c.1300, earlier "male goat;" from O.E. bucca "male goat," from P.Gmc. *bukkon (cf. M.Du. boc, O.H.G. boc, O.N. bokkr), perhaps from a PIE base *bhugo (cf. Avestan buza "buck, goat," Arm. buc "lamb"), but some speculate that it is from a lost pre-Gmc. language. Barnhart says O.E. buc "male deer" is a "ghost word or scribal error." Meaning "dollar" is 1856, Amer.Eng., perhaps an abbreviation of buckskin, a unit of trade among Indians and Europeans in frontier days, attested in this sense from 1748. Pass the buck is first recorded in the lit. sense 1865, Amer.Eng.:
"The 'buck' is any inanimate object, usually knife or pencil, which is thrown into a jack pot and temporarily taken by the winner of the pot. Whenever the deal reaches the holder of the 'buck', a new jack pot must be made." [J.W. Keller, "Draw Poker," 1887]
The fig. sense of "shift responsibility" is first recorded 1912. Buck private is recorded by 1870s, of uncertain signification.
buck (v.): 1848, apparently with a sense of "jump like a buck," from buck (n.1). Buck up "cheer up" is from 1844.
buck (n.2): "sawhorse," 1817, Amer.Eng., apparently from Du. bok "trestle."
buck-eye: "American horse chestnut," 1763, said to be so called from resemblance to a stag's eye. Meaning "native of Ohio" is attested since 1822.
buckaroo: 1889, Amer.Eng., from bakhara (1827), from Sp. vaquero "cowboy," from vaca "cow," from L. vacca. Spelling altered by influence of buck.
buckboard: 1839, "plank on wheels," from board (n.) + buck "body of a cart or wagon" (1690s), perhaps a dial. survival of O.E. buc "belly, body, trunk." As a type of vehicle constructed this way, from 1874.
bucket: mid-13c., from Anglo-Norm. buquet "bucket, pail," influenced by or dim. of O.E. buc "pitcher, bulging vessel," originally "belly" (buckets were formerly of leather as well as wood), from P.Gmc. *bukaz, from PIE root *bhou-, variant of base *bheu- "to grow, swell." Kick the bucket (1785) perhaps is from unrelated O.Fr. buquet "balance," a beam from which slaughtered animals were hung; perhaps reinforced by the notion of suicide by hanging.
Buckinghamshire: O.E. Buccingahamscir, from Buccingahamme (early 10c.), "River-bend land of the family or followers of a man called Bucca."
buckle (n.): "spiked metal ring for holding a belt, etc., c.1300, bukel, from O.Fr. bocle "boss (of a shield), buckle, metal ring," 12c., from L. buccula "cheek strap of a helmet," dim. of bucca "cheek." The verb in this sense is late 14c., bokelen.
buckle (v.): "distort, warp," 1520s, bokelen "to arch the body," from M.Fr. boucler "to bulge," from O.Fr. bocler "to bulge, curl," from bocle "boss of a shield."
buckler: "small, round shield used to ward off blows," c.1300, from O.Fr. boucler (12c., Mod.Fr. bouclier), from L. *buccularius (adj.) "having a boss," from buccula (see buckle (v.)).
bucko: term of address, originally (1883) nautical and with a sense of "swaggering, domineering fellow." Probably from buck in the slang sense of "a blood or choice spirit."
"There are in London divers lodges or societies of Bucks, formed in imitation of the Free Masons: one was held at the Rose, in Monkwell-street, about the year 1705. The president is styled the Grand Buck." ["Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue," 1811]
buckra: disparaging term among U.S. blacks for "white person," especially a poor one, 1790, apparently from an African language; cf. mbakara "master" in Efik, a language of the Ibibio people of southern Nigeria.
buckram: early 13c., from O.Fr. boquerant "fine oriental cloth" (12c.), probably from Bukhara, city in central Asia from which it was imported to Europe. Originally a name of a delicate, costly fabric, it later came to mean coarse linen used for lining. The -m in the English word may indicate Italian origin (cf. It. bucherame, 14c.).
buckshot: coarse kind of shot used for deer and other large game, 1776, from buck (n.) + shot.
buckskin: c.1300, "skin of a buck," from buck (n.) + skin. Meaning "leather made from buckskin" was in use by 1804. The word was a nickname for Continental troops in the American Revolution.
bucktooth: 1540s, from buck (n.1), perhaps on the notion of "kicking up." In French, buck teeth are called dents à l'anglaise, lit. "English teeth."
buckwheat: 1540s, from M.Du. boecweite "beech wheat" (cf. Dan. boghvede, Swed. bohvete, Ger. Buchweizen), so called from resemblance between grains and seed of beech trees. Possibly a native formation on the same model as the Dutch word.
bucolic: 1610s, earlier bucolical (1520s), from L. bucolicus, from Gk. boukolikos "pastoral, rustic," from boukolos "cowherd, herdsman," from bous "cow" + -kolos "tending," related to L. colere "to till (the ground), cultivate, dwell, inhabit" (the root of colony).
bud: late 14c., budde, origin unknown, perhaps from O.Fr. boter "push forward, thrust," itself a Germanic word (cf. Du. bot "bud," O.S. budil "bag, purse," Ger. Beutel), or from O.E. budd "beetle." The verb is c.1400.
Budapest: Hungarian capital, formed 1872 from merger of two cities on opposite shores of the Danube, Buda (probably from a word originally meaning "water") + Pest, a Slavic name meaning "furnace, oven, cove" (cf. Rus. pech').
Buddha: 1680s, from Pali, lit. "awakened, enlightened," pp. of budh "to awake, know, perceive," related to Skt. bodhati "is awake, observes, understands" (see bid). Title given by his adherents to the man who taught this path, Siddhartha Gautama, also known to them as Sakyamuni "Sage of the Sakyas" (his family clan), who lived in northern India 5c. B.C.E.
Buddhism: 1801, from Buddha + -ism.
Buddhist: 1810, from Buddha + -ist. An earlier word in this sense was a direct borrowing of Skt. Bauddha "follower of Buddha" (1801 in Eng.), hence early erroneous hybrid forms such as Boudhist, Bauddhist.
buddy: 1850, Amer.Eng., possibly an alteration of brother, or from British colloquial butty "companion" (1802), itself perhaps a variant of booty in booty fellow "confederate who shares plunder" (1520s). But butty, meaning "work-mate," also was a localized dialect word in England and Wales, attested since 18c., and long associated with coal miners. Short form bud is attested from 1851.
budge: 1580s, from M.Fr. bougier "to move, stir" (Mod.Fr. bouger), from V.L. *bullicare "to bubble, boil" (hence, "to be in motion"), from L. bullire "to boil" (see boil (v.)).
budgerigar: 1847, from Native Australian, lit. "good cockatoo," from budgeri "good" + gar "cockatoo."
budget: early 15c., "leather pouch," from M.Fr. bougette, dim. of O.Fr. bouge "leather bag, wallet, pouch," from L. bulga "leather bag," of Gaulish origin (cf. O.Ir. bolg "bag," Bret. bolc'h "flax pod"), from PIE *bhelgh- (see belly). Modern financial meaning (1733) is from notion of treasury minister keeping his fiscal plans in a wallet. The verb in this sense is from 1884. Another 18c. transferred sense was to "a bundle of news," hence the use of the word as the title of some newspapers.
budgie: 1936, short for budgerigar.
buff: 1570s, buffe leather, from M.Fr. buffle "buffalo" (15c., via It. from L. bufalus; see see buffalo). The color term comes from the hue of buffalo hides (later ox hides); association of "hide" and "skin" led c.1600 to in the buff, and use of buff or suede to polish metal led to sense of verb "to polish with a buff" (1885). Related: Buffed; buffing. Buff-colored uniforms of N.Y.C. volunteer firefighters since 1820s led to meaning "enthusiast" (1903).
"The Buffs are men and boys whose love of fires, fire-fighting and firemen is a predominant characteristic." [N.Y. "Sun," Feb. 4, 1903]
Adj. meaning "well-built, hunky" is from 1980s, from sense "polish, make attractive."
buffalo: 1580s (earlier buffel, 1510s, from M.Fr.), from Port. bufalo "water buffalo," from L. bufalus, var. of bubalus "wild ox," from Gk. boubalos "buffalo," originally a kind of African antelope, later used of a type of domesticated ox in southern Asia and the Mediterranean lands, from bous "ox, cow" (see cow). Wrongly applied since 1630s to the American bison. The verb meaning "to overawe" is from 1903. Buffalo gnat is recorded from 1822.
Buffalo: city in western New York state, U.S., of disputed origin (there never were buffalo thereabouts), perhaps from the name of a native chief, or a corruption of Fr. beau fleuve "beautiful river." Buffalo wings finger food so called because the recipe was invented in Buffalo, N.Y., (1964, at Frank & Teressa's Anchor Bar on Main Street).
buffer: 1835, from obsolete verb buff "make a dull sound when struck" (mid-16c.), from O.Fr. buffe "a blow;" hence "something that absorbs a blow."
buffet (v.): early 13c., from O.Fr. bufet "slap, punch," dim. of bufe "a blow, puff of wind," probably echoic of the sound of something soft being hit.
buffet (n.): "table," 1718, from Fr. bufet "bench, stool, sideboard," 12c., of uncertain origin. Sense extended 1888 to "meal served from a buffet."
buffoon: 1540s, "type of pantomime dance," 1580s, "clown," from M.Fr. bouffon (16c.), from It. buffone "jester," from buffare "to puff out the cheeks," a comic gesture, of echoic origin. Buffoonery is from 1620s.
Bufo: toad genus, from L. bufo "a toad," an Osco-Umbrian loan-word, equivalent to O.Prus. gabawo "toad," O.C.S. zaba "frog," M.L.G. kwappe "tadpole."
bug (n.): "insect," 1620s (earliest reference is to bedbugs), probably from M.E. bugge "something frightening, scarecrow" (late 14c.), a meaning obsolete except in bugbear (1570s) and bugaboo (q.v.); probably connected with Scot. bogill "goblin, bugbear," or obsolete Welsh bwg "ghost, goblin" (cf. Welsh bwgwl "threat," earlier "fear"). Cf. also bogey (1) and Ger. bögge, böggel-mann "goblin." Perhaps influenced in meaning by O.E. -budda used in compounds for "beetle" (cf. Low Ger. budde "louse, grub," M.L.G. buddech "thick, swollen"). Meaning "defect in a machine" (1889) may have been coined c.1878 by Thomas Edison (perhaps with the notion of an insect getting into the works). Meaning "person obsessed by an idea" (e.g. firebug) is from 1841. Sense of "microbe, germ" is from 1919. Bugs "crazy" is from c.1900.
bug (v.): "to bulge," 1870s, perhaps from a humorous or dialect mispronunciation of bulge. The verb "to annoy, irritate" is first attested 1949, probably in allusion to insect pests, from bug (n.). Sense of "equip with a concealed microphone" is from 1919. Related: Bugged; bugging. Phrase bug off is 1950s, perhaps from bugger off, which is chiefly British (by 1920s) but was picked up in U.S. Air Force slang in the Korean War.
bugaboo: 1843, earlier buggybow (1740), probably an alteration of bugbear (see bug), but connected by Chapman [DAS] with Bugibu, demon in the O.Fr. poem "Aliscans" from 1141, which is perhaps of Celtic origin (cf. Cornish bucca-boo, from bucca "bogle, goblin").
bugbear: 1580s, a sort of demon in the form of a bear that eats small children, also "object of dread" (whether real or not), from bug (n.) + bear (n.).
bugger: "sodomite," 1550s, earlier "heretic" (mid-14c.), from M.L. Bulgarus "a Bulgarian" (see Bulgaria), so called from Catholic bigoted notions of the sex lives of Eastern Orthodox Christians or of the sect of heretics that was prominent there 11c.
buggery: mid-14c., "heresy," later "unnatural intercourse" with man or beast, "carnalis copula contra Naturam, & hoc vel per confusionem Specierum". See bugger.
buggy (n.): "light carriage," 1773, of unknown origin.
buggy (adj.): "infested with bugs," 1774, from bug (n.) + -y (2).