"vulgar latin" | Search Online Etymology Dictionary

685 entries found.

"the sun personified," mid-15c. (also in Old English), from Latin sol "the sun, sunlight," from PIE *s(e)wol-, variant of root *sawel- "the sun." French soleil (10c.) is from Vulgar Latin *soliculus, diminutive of sol; in Vulgar Latin diminutives had the full meaning of their principal words.

velvet (n.)

early 14c., probably from Old Provençal veluet, from Vulgar Latin *villutittus, diminutive of Vulgar Latin *villutus "velvet," literally "shaggy cloth," from Latin villus "shaggy hair, nap of cloth, tuft of hair," probably a dialectal variant of vellus "fleece," from PIE *wel-no-, suffixed form of *uelh- "to strike" (see svelte).

caramba

exclamation of dismay or surprise, 1835, from Spanish, said to be a euphemism for carajo "penis," from Vulgar Latin *caraculum "little arrow."

bound (v.2)

"to leap, spring upward, jump," 1590s, from French bondir "to rebound, resound, echo," from Old French bondir "to leap, jump, rebound;" originally "make a noise, sound (a horn), beat (a drum)," 13c., ultimately "to echo back," from Vulgar Latin *bombitire "to buzz, hum" (see bomb (n.)), perhaps on model of Old French tentir, from Vulgar Latin *tinnitire.

estrange (v.)

late 15c., from French estrangier "to alienate," from Vulgar Latin *extraneare "to treat as a stranger," from Latin extraneus "foreign, from without" (see strange). Related: Estranged.

famine (n.)

mid-14c., from Old French famine "famine, starvation" (12c.), from Vulgar Latin *famina, from Latin fames "hunger, starvation, famine," which is of unknown origin.

certainty (n.)

c. 1300, certeynte, "surety, pledge," from Anglo-French certeinté (late 13c.), Old French certainete "certainty," from Latin or Vulgar Latin *certanitatem (source of Old Spanish certanedad), from Vulgar Latin *certanus (see certain). Meaning "that which is certain, a clear fact or truth" is attested from early 14c.; meaning "quality or fact of being certain; full assurance of mind, exemption from doubt" is from early 15c.

shallot (n.)

"small onion," 1660s, shortened from eschalot, from French échalote, from French eschalotte, from Old French eschaloigne, from Vulgar Latin *escalonia (see scallion).

assault (v.)

"attack physically," early 15c., assauten, from Old French asauter, assauter, from Vulgar Latin *assaltare (see assault (n.)). Related: Assaulted; assaulting.

escapade (n.)

1650s, "an escape from confinement," from French escapade (16c.) "a prank or trick," from Spanish escapada "a prank, flight, an escape," noun use of fem. past participle of escapar "to escape," from Vulgar Latin *excappare (see escape (v.)). Or perhaps the French word is via Italian scappata, from scappare, from the same Vulgar Latin source. Figurative sense (1814) implies a "breaking loose" from rules or restraints on behavior.

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