Word Radicals: Etymology

Ever wonder where English words really come from?

WordLookup traces any English word back through history to its Latin, Greek, Old English, French, Germanic, Sanskrit, and Arabic origins. See the full etymology chain — every language a word passed through on its way into modern English.

Search for "compel" and watch it unfold: borrowed from Latin compellere, itself from com- ("together") + pellere ("to drive"). Search "philosophy" and trace it from Greek philosophia — philos ("loving") + sophia ("wisdom").

FEATURES

• Etymology chains showing the complete journey of a word through languages
• Morpheme breakdowns revealing how Latin and Greek words were built from smaller parts
• Classical sources from Lewis & Short (Latin) and Liddell-Scott-Jones (Greek) lexicons, with original definitions and quotations
• Semantic relationships including cognates, doublets, calques, and loan translations across languages
• Word definitions with online dictionary fallback
• Falling words — an ambient display of etymology-rich words you can tap to explore
• Dark, minimal interface designed for reading
• Entirely offline — no internet connection required after download