Etymology dictionary
keen (v.) — khan (n.)
keen (v.)
"lament loudly over the dead, bitterly wail," 1811, from Irish caoinim "I weep, wail, lament," from Old Irish coinim "I wail." Hence "to utter in a shrill voice" (1893). Related: Keened; keener; keening. As a noun from 1830.
keenly (adv.)
Old English cenlice "boldly;" see keen (adj.) + -ly (2). Meaning "incisively, with intensity, acutely" is from c. 1200; that of "cuttingly" is from 1590s.
keeping (n.)
"care, custody, charge," c. 1300, verbal noun from keep (v.). Phrase in keeping with "in harmony or agreement with" (1806) is from use of keeping in the jargon of painting to refer to a pleasing harmony of the elements of a picture (1715).
keep (n.)
mid-13c., "care or heed in watching," from keep (v.). Meaning "innermost stronghold or central tower of a castle" is from 1580s; OED says this is perhaps a translation of Italian tenazza, the notion being "that which keeps" (someone or something). The sense of "food required to keep a person or animal" is attested from 1801 (to earn (one's) keep is from 1885). For keeps "completely, for good" is American English colloquial, from 1861, probably from the notion of keeping one's winnings in games such as marbles.
keep (v.)
Middle English kēpen, from late Old English cepan (past tense cepte) "to seize, hold; seek after, desire," also "to observe or carry out in practice; look out for, regard, pay attention to," from Proto-Germanic *kopjan, which is of uncertain origin. Old English cepan was used c. 1000 to render Latin observare, so perhaps it is related to Old English capian "to look" (from Proto-Germanic *kap-), which would make the basic sense "to keep an eye on, see to it."
The senses exploded in Middle English: "to guard, defend" (12c.); "restrain (someone) from doing something" (early 13c.); "take care of, look after; protect or preserve (someone or something) from harm, damage, etc." (mid-13c.); "preserve, maintain, carry on" a shop, store, etc. (mid-14c.); "prevent from entering or leaving, force to remain or stay" (late 14c.); "preserve (something) without loss or change," also "not divulge" a secret, private information, etc., also "to last without spoiling" (late 14c.); "continue on" (a course, road, etc.), "adhere to" a course of action (late 14c.); "stay or remain" (early 15c.); "to continue" (doing something) (mid-15c.). It is used to translate both Latin conservare "preserve, keep safe" and tenere "to keep, retain."
From 1540s as "maintain for ready use;" 1706 as "have habitually in stock for sale." Meaning "financially support and privately control" (usually in reference to mistresses) is from 1540s; meaning "maintain in proper order" (of books, accounts) is from 1550s.
To keep at "work persistently" is from 1825; to keep on "continue, persist" is from 1580s. To keep up is from 1630s as "continue alongside, proceed in pace with," 1660s as "maintain in good order or condition, retain, preserve," 1680s as "support, hold in an existing state." To keep it up "continue (something) vigorously" is from 1752. To keep to "restrict (oneself) to" is from 1711. To keep off (trans.) "hinder from approach or attack" is from 1540s; to keep out (trans.) "prevent from entering" is from early 15c.
keepable (adj.)
keep-away (n.)
as a game, 1925, from verbal phrase (attested from late 14c.); see keep (v.) + away (adv.).
keeper (n.)
c. 1300 (late 13c. as a surname), "one who has charge of some person or thing, warden," agent noun from keep (v.). Sense of "one who carries on some business" is from mid-15c. Sporting sense (originally cricket) is from 1744. Meaning "something (or someone) worth keeping" is attested by 1999. Brother's keeper is from Genesis iv.9.
keepsake (n.)
"anything kept or given to be kept for the sake of the giver; a token of friendship," 1790, from keep (v.) + sake (n.1); an unusual formation on model of namesake; thus an object kept for the sake of the giver. The word was used c. 1830s in titles of popular holiday gift books containing beautiful engravings and mediocre poetry. As an adjective by 1839.
kef (n.)
"state of dreaming intoxication produced by smoking cannabis," 1808, from Arabic kaif "well-being, good-humor; dolce far niente." In Morocco and Algeria, it was said to be the name for Indian hemp.
keg (n.)
1630s, earlier kag (mid-15c.), from a Scandinavian source such as Old Norse kaggi "keg, cask," of unknown origin. Cognate with Swedish kagge, Norwegian kagg. Specific sense of "small or half barrel of beer" is from 1945. U.S. student slang kegger "party featuring a keg of beer" attested by 1969.
*keg-
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "hook, tooth."
It forms all or part of: hacek; hack (v.1) "to cut roughly, cut with chopping blows;" hake; Hakenkreuz; heckle; hook; hooker.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Russian kogot "claw;" Old English hoc "hook, angle."
key (n.2)
"low island," 1690s, from Spanish cayo "shoal, reef," from Taino (Arawakan) cayo "small island;" spelling influenced by Middle English key "wharf" (c. 1300; mid-13c. in place names), from Old French kai "sand bank" (see quay).
key (n.1)
"instrument for opening locks," Middle English keie, from Old English cæg "metal piece that works a lock, key" literal and figurative ("solution, explanation, one who or that which opens the way or explains"), a word of unknown origin, abnormal evolution, and no sure cognates other than Old Frisian kei.
Perhaps it is related to Middle Low German keie "lance, spear" on notion of "tool to cleave with," from Proto-Germanic *ki- "to cleave, split" (cognates: German Keil "wedge," Gothic us-kijans "come forth," said of seed sprouts, keinan "to germinate"). But Liberman writes, "The original meaning of *kaig-jo- was presumably '*pin with a twisted end.' Words with the root *kai- followed by a consonant meaning 'crooked, bent; twisted' are common only in the North Germanic languages." Compare also Sanskrit kuncika- "key," from kunc- "make crooked."
Modern pronunciation is a northern variant predominating from c. 1700; earlier and in Middle English it often was pronounced "kay." Meaning "that which holds together other parts" is from 1520s. Meaning "explanation of a solution" (to a set problem, code, etc.) is from c.1600.
The musical sense originally was "tone, note" (mid-15c.). In music theory, the sense developed 17c. to "sum of the melodic and harmonic relationships in the tones of a scale," also "melodic and harmonic relationships centering on a given tone." Probably this is based on a translation of Latin clavis "key," used by Guido for "lowest tone of a scale," or French clef (see clef; also see keynote). Sense of "mechanism on a musical instrument operated by the player's fingers" is from c. 1500, probably also suggested by uses of clavis. OED says this use "appears to be confined to Eng[lish]." First of organs and pianos, by 1765 of wind instruments; transferred to telegraphy by 1837 and later to typewriters (1876).
Key ring, a ring for holding several keys, is by 1685 (where it is given as a translation for Latin annulus clavicularius.)
key (v.)
mid-14c., "fasten with a wedge or key" (implied in keyed), from key (n.1). From 1630s as "regulate the pitch of a musical instrument by means of a key," also in the figurative sense "give a tone or intensity to."
It is attested by 1958 as "do data entry or other work on a keyboard." The meaning "to scratch (a car's paint job) with a metal key" is recorded by 1986. Related: Keyed; keying.
keyed (adj.)
1796, "having keys," from key (n.) in the musical sense. Also "to set the tone (of a musical instrument) to a particular key; hence figurative keyed up "excited, high-strung" (1889).
key (adj.)
"crucially important," 1913, from key (n.1). Perhaps from or reinforced by key move, in chess, "first move in a solution to a set problem" (1827), which to an experienced player opens the way to see how the solution will develop.
*kei- (1)
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to lie," also forming words for "bed, couch," and with a secondary sense of "beloved, dear."
It forms all or part of: ceilidh; cemetery; city; civic; civil; civilian; civilization; civilize; hide (n.2) measure of land; incivility; incunabula; Siva.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit Sivah "propitious, gracious;" Greek keisthai "to lie, lie asleep;" Latin cunae "a cradle;" Old Church Slavonic semija "family, domestic servants;" Lithuanian šeima "domestic servants," Lettish sieva "wife;" Old English hiwan "members of a household."
*keie-
also keiə-, Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to set in motion."
It might form all or part of: behest; cinema; cinematography; citation; cite; excite; hest; hight; hyperkinetic; incite; kinase; kinematics; kinesics; kinesiology; kinesis; kinesthesia; kinesthetic; kinetic; kineto-; kino-; oscitant; recital; recitation; recite; resuscitate; solicit; solicitous; suscitate; telekinesis.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit cyavate "stirs himself, goes;" Greek kinein "to move, set in motion; change, stir up," kinymai "move myself;" Latin ciere (past participle citus, frequentative citare) "to set in motion, summon;" Gothic haitan "call, be called;" Old English hatan "command, call."
keister (n.)
"buttocks," 1931, perhaps transferred from the same word in an underworld meaning "safe, strongbox" (1914), earlier "a burglar's toolkit that can be locked" (1881); probably from British dialect kist (northern form of chest (n.)) or its German cognate Kiste "chest, box." The connection of the word to the body part might be via the pickpocket slang sense of "rear trouser pocket" (1930s).
*kel- (1)
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to cover, conceal, save."
It forms all or part of: Anselm; apocalypse; Brussels; caliology; Calypso; calyx; ceiling; cell; cellar; cellular; cellulite; cellulitis; cilia; clandestine; cojones; coleoptera; color; conceal; eucalyptus; hall; hell; helm (n.2) "a helmet;" helmet; hold (n.2) "space in a ship below the lower deck;" hole; hollow; holster; housing (n.2) "ornamental covering;" hull (n.1) "seed covering;" kil-; kleptomania; occult; rathskeller; supercilious; Valhalla; William.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit cala "hut, house, hall;" Greek kalia "hut, nest," kalyptein "to cover," koleon, koleos "sheath," kelyphos "shell, husk;" Latin cella "small room, store room, hut," celare "to hide, conceal," clam "secret," clepere "to steal, listen secretly to;" Old Irish cuile "cellar," celim "hide," Middle Irish cul "defense, shelter;" Gothic hulistr "covering," Old English heolstor "lurking-hole, cave, covering," Gothic huljan "to cover over," hulundi "hole," hilms "helmet," halja "hell," Old English hol "cave," holu "husk, pod;" Old Prussian au-klipts "hidden;" Old Church Slavonic poklopu "cover, wrapping."
*kel- (2)
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to be prominent," also "hill."
It forms all or part of: colonel; colonnade; colophon; column; culminate; culmination; excel; excellence; excellent; excelsior; hill; holm.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit kutam "top, skull;" Latin collis "hill," columna "projecting object," cellere "raise;" Greek kolōnos "hill," kolophōn "summit;" Lithuanian kalnas "mountain," kalnelis "hill," kelti "raise;" Old English hyll "hill," Old Norse hallr "stone," Gothic hallus "rock."
keld (n.)
"a spring," 1690s, limited to northern dialect, but frequent in place names; from Old Norse kelda "a well, fountain, spring," also "a deep, still, smooth part of a river," from a Germanic verbal root represented by German quellen "to swell, spring, gush."
*kele- (1)
kelə-, Proto-Indo-European root meaning "warm." It forms all or part of: caldera; calid; Calor; caloric; calorie; calorimeter; cauldron; caudle; chafe; chauffeur; chowder; coddle; lee; lukewarm; nonchalant; scald (v.) "afflict painfully with hot liquid or steam."
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit carad- "harvest," literally "hot time;" Latin calor "heat," calidus "warm," calere "be hot;" Lithuanian šilti "become warm," šilus "August;" Old Norse hlær, Old English hleow "warm."
*kele- (2)
*kelə-, Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to shout." Perhaps imitative.
It forms all or part of: acclaim; acclamation; Aufklarung; calendar; chiaroscuro; claim; Claire; clairvoyance; clairvoyant; clamor; Clara; claret; clarify; clarinet; clarion; clarity; class; clear; cledonism; conciliate; conciliation; council; declaim; declare; disclaim; ecclesiastic; eclair; exclaim; glair; hale (v.); halyard; intercalate; haul; keelhaul; low (v.); nomenclature; paraclete; proclaim; reclaim; reconcile.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit usakala "cock," literally "dawn-calling;" Latin calare "to announce solemnly, call out," clamare "to cry out, shout, proclaim;" Middle Irish cailech "cock;" Greek kalein "to call," kelados "noise," kledon "report, fame;" Old High German halan "to call;" Old English hlowan "to low, make a noise like a cow;" Lithuanian kalba "language."
Kelly
common Irish surname, from Old Irish ceallach "war." As a type of pool played with 15 balls, it is attested from 1898. Kelly green first recorded 1917.
Kellogg
surname, attested from late 13c. (Gilbert Kelehog), literally "kill hog," a name for a butcher (compare kill-buck, a medieval surname, also noted as a term of contempt for a butcher). The U.S. cereal company began in Battle Creek, Michigan, in 1906, founded by W.K. Kellogg (1860-1951), business manager of the Battle Creek Sanatorium, as Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Company.
keloid (n.)
also cheloid, 1854, from French kéloïde, from Greek khēlē "crab claw, talon, cloven hoof" + -oidēs (see -oid). Related: Keloidal; cheloidal.
kelp (n.)
1660s, "large seaweed," from Middle English culpe (late 14c.), a word of unknown origin. Specifically of a type of Pacific seaweed of the Americas from 1834. Kelper "native or inhabitant of the Falkland Islands" is attested from 1896.
kelpie (n.)
1747, Scottish, of unknown origin, perhaps related to Gaelic colpach "heifer, steer, colt;" colpa "cow, horse." The Lowland name of a demon in the shape of a horse that was reputed to haunt lakes and rivers and to delight in causing drownings. But unlike its equivalents in Danish (nøkken) and Icelandic (nykur), it occasionally was benevolent, especially to millers by keeping their streams running.
Kelvin
unit of absolute temperature scale, 1911, in honor of British physicist Sir William Thompson, Lord Kelvin (1824-1907).
kempt (adj.)
"well-combed, neat," late 14c., from past tense of archaic kemb "to comb," from Old English cemdan (see unkempt). A rare word after c. 1500; any modern use probably is a whimsical back-formation from unkempt.
ken (n.2)
"house used as a meeting place by thieves or other disreputable characters," 1560s, vagabonds' slang, probably a shortening of kennel (n.).
kenning (n.2)
early 14c., "sign, token; teaching, instruction;" c. 1400, "range of vision," also "mental cognition;" late 15c., "sight, view;" verbal nouns from ken (v.).
ken (v.)
"to know, understand, take cognizance of," a word surviving mainly in Scottish and northern England dialect, from Middle English kennen, "make known; give instruction to; be aware, know, have knowledge of, know how to; recognize by sight; see, catch sight of," a very common verb, from Old English cennan "make known, declare, acknowledge" (in late Old English also "to know"), originally "cause to know, make to know," causative of cunnan "to become acquainted with, to know" (see can (v.)). Cognate with German kennen, Danish kjende, Swedish känna. Related: Kenned; kenning.
kenning (n.1)
"periphrastic expression in early Germanic poetry" (such as swan-road for "sea," sky-candle for "sun"), 1871, a modern learned word from Old Norse kenning in a special sense "poetical periphrasis or descriptive name" (it also meant "teaching, doctrine; preaching; mark of recognition"), from kenna "to know, to recognize, to feel or perceive; to call, to name (in a formal poetic metaphor)," from PIE root *gno- "to know."
Cognate Old English cenning is attested as "procreation; declaration in court" (and see kenning (n.2)).
ken (n.1)
1550s, "cognizance, intellectual view;" 1580s in a physical sense, "range of sight;" from ken (v.), in the second sense perhaps via kenning (n.2) in the same sense in nautical use; both from PIE root *gno- "to know."
kendal (n.)
green woolen cloth, late 14c., from place name in Westmoreland where it was manufactured. The place (which is in the Domesday Book) is "Kent-dale," so called for being in the dale of the River Kent.
Kenelm
masc. proper name, Old English Cenhelm, from cene "brave, bold" (see keen (adj.)) + helm "helmet" (see helmet (n.)).
Kennedy
Irish surname, said to be from Old Irish cinneide "ugly head."
kennel (v.)
1550s (intransitive) "live in a kennel;" 1590s (transitive) "house in or as in a kennel;" from kennel (n.). Related: Kenneled; kenneling.
kennel (n.)
c. 1300, from Anglo-French *kenil, French chenil (attested from 16c. but probably older), from Vulgar Latin *canile, from Latin canis "dog" (from PIE root *kwon- "dog"). With suffix denoting a place where animals are kept, as in ovile "sheepfold" from ovus, equile "horse-stable" from equus, etc. Kennel club is attested from 1857.
Kenneth
masc. proper name, Scottish, from Gaelic Caioneach, literally "handsome, comely."
keno-
before vowels, ken-, word-forming element meaning "empty," from Greek kenos "empty," from PIE *ken- "empty."
keno (n.)
game of chance (akin to bingo), 1814, American English, probably from French quine "five winning numbers in a lottery," from Latin quini "five each," distributive of quinque "five" (from PIE root *penkwe- "five"). The numbers are arranged in rows of five.
kenosis (n.)
"self-limitation of God at the Annunciation," 1873, from Greek kenosis "an emptying," from kenoein "to empty," from kenos "empty" (see keno-). From Philippians ii:7. Related: Kenotic.
kenspeck (adj.)
"known by marks, conspicuous, easily recognizable," 1580s, from Old Norse kennispeki "the faculty of recognition," from kenni "a mark" + speki "wisdom," from spakr "wise." Sometimes kenspeckled (1714), as though "conspicuous because marked with speckles or freckles."
Kent
southeasternmost county of England, Old English Cent, Cent lond, Centrice, from Latin Cantia, Canticum (Caesar), Greek Kantion (Strabo, 51 B.C.E.), from an ancient British Celtic name often explained as "coastal district," or "corner-land, land on the edge," but possibly "land of the hosts or armies." Related: Kentish (Old English Centisc).
Kentucky
U.S. state (admitted 1792), earlier a county of Virginia (organized 1776); the name is of Iroquois or Shawnee origin, perhaps a Wyandot (Iroquoian) word meaning "meadow" (compare Seneca geda'geh "at the field"); the original use in English seems to have been the river name; the native use perhaps was first in reference to a village in what now is Clark County known in Shawnee as Eskippakithiki. Related: Kentuckian.
Kenya
African nation, named for Mount Kenya, which probably is a shortening of Kikuyu Kirinyaga, from kere nyaga, literally "white mountain" (though just south of the equator, it is snowcapped). Related: Kenyan.
kepi (n.)
soldier's peaked cap, 1861, from French képi (19c.), from German Swiss käppi, diminutive of German Kappe "a cap," from Late Latin cappa "hood, cap" (see cap (n.)). The usual style of uniform cap in the American Civil War.
kept (adj.)
1670s, past-participle adjective from keep (v.). For the -t, compare went.
*kers-
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to run."
It forms all or part of: car; career; cargo; caricature; cark; carpenter; carriage; carrier; carry; charabanc; charette; charge; chariot; concourse; concur; concurrent; corral; corridor; corsair; courant; courier; course; currency; current; curriculum; cursive; cursor; cursory; discharge; discourse; encharge; excursion; hussar; incur; intercourse; kraal; miscarry; occur; precursor; recourse; recur; succor.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Greek -khouros "running;" Latin currere "to run, move quickly;" Lithuanian karšiu, karšti "go quickly;"Old Irish and Middle Welsh carr "cart, wagon," Breton karr "chariot," Welsh carrog "torrent;" Old Norse horskr "swift."
*ker- (1)
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "horn; head," with derivatives referring to horned animals, horn-shaped objects, and projecting parts.
It forms all or part of: alpenhorn; Capricorn; carat; carotid; carrot; carotene; cerato-; cerebellum; cerebral; cerebrum; cervical; cervix; charivari; cheer; chelicerae; corn (n.2) "hardening of the skin;" cornea; corner; cornet; cornucopia; cranium; flugelhorn; hart; hartebeest; horn; hornbeam; hornblende; hornet; keratin; kerato-; migraine; monoceros; reindeer; rhinoceros; saveloy; serval; triceratops; unicorn.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit srngam "horn;" Persian sar "head," Avestan sarah- "head;" Greek karnon "horn," koryne "club, mace," koryphe "head;" Latin cornu "horn," cervus "deer;" Old English horn "horn of an animal;" Welsh carw "deer."
*ker- (2)
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to grow."
It forms all or part of: accretion; accrue; cereal; Ceres; concrete; create; creation; creature; Creole; crescendo; crescent; crew (n.) "group of soldiers;" croissant; cru; decrease; Dioscuri; excrescence; excrescent; griot; increase; Kore; procerity; procreate; procreation; recreate; recreation; recruit; sincere.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Greek kouros "boy," korē "girl;" Latin crescere "come forth, spring up, grow, thrive, swell," Ceres, goddess of agriculture, creare "to bring forth, create, produce;" Armenian serem "bring forth," serim "be born."
ker-
U.S. slang prefix, by 1836 as che-, 1843 as ker-, possibly from influence of German or Dutch ge-, past participial prefixes; or ultimately echoic of the sound of the fall of some heavy body.
*ker- (3)
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "heat, fire."
It forms all or part of: carbon; carboniferous; carbuncle; cremate; cremation; hearth.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit kudayati "singes;" Latin carbo "a coal, glowing coal; charcoal," cremare "to burn;" Lithuanian kuriu, kurti "to heat," karštas "hot," krosnis "oven;" Old Church Slavonic kurjo "to smoke," krada "fireplace, hearth;" Russian ceren "brazier;" Old High German harsta "roasting;" Gothic hauri "coal;" Old Norse hyrr "fire;" Old English heorð "hearth."
keratin (n.)
basic substance of horns, nails, feathers, etc., 1848, from Greek keras (genitive keratos) "horn of an animal; horn as a substance" (from PIE root *ker- (1) "horn; head") + chemical suffix -in (2).
kerato-
before vowels, kerat-, scientific word-forming element meaning "horn, horny," also "cornea of the eye" (see cornea), from Greek keras (genitive keratos) "the horn of an animal; horn as a material," from PIE root *ker- (1) "horn; head."
kerb (n.)
1660s, a spelling variant of curb (n.); in early use also kirb. It is the preferred British English spelling in certain specialized senses, especially "edging of stone on a pavement" (1805). Related: Kerbing; kerbstone.
kerchief (n.)
"square piece of fabric folded and worn about the head," early 13c., kovrechief "piece of cloth used to cover part of the head," especially a woman's head-cloth or veil, from Anglo-French courchief, Old French couvrechief "a kerchief," literally "cover head," from couvrir "to cover" (see cover (v.)) + chief "head" (from Latin caput "head," from PIE root *kaput- "head"). From late 14c. as "piece of cloth used about the person" generally, for purposes other than covering the head; and from c. 1400 as "piece of cloth carried in the hand" to wipe the face, etc. (compare handkerchief).
*kerd-
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "heart."
It forms all or part of: accord; cardiac; cardio-; concord; core; cordial; courage; credence; credible; credit; credo; credulous; creed; discord; grant; heart; incroyable; megalocardia; miscreant; myocardium; pericarditis; pericardium; quarry (n.1) "what is hunted;" record; recreant; tachycardia.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Greek kardia, Latin cor, Armenian sirt, Old Irish cride, Welsh craidd, Hittite kir, Lithuanian širdis, Russian serdce, Old English heorte, German Herz, Gothic hairto, "heart;" Breton kreiz "middle;" Old Church Slavonic sreda "middle."
kerfuffle (n.)
"row, disturbance," 1970; from 1946 as kafuffle, said to have been used c. 1930 in Canadian English, ultimately from Scottish curfuffle.
kermes (n.)
c. 1600, "shield louse (Coccus ilicis) that yields a red dye" (1590s of the tree on which the insects live), from Medieval Latin cremesinus (also source of French kermès, Italian chermes, Spanish carmes), from Arabic qirmiz "kermes," from Sanskrit krmi-ja a compound meaning "(red dye) produced by a worm."
The Sanskrit compound is krmih "worm" (from PIE root *kwrmi- "worm," source also of Lithuanian kirmis, Old Irish cruim, Albanian krimp "worm") + -ja- "produced" (from PIE root *gene- "give birth, beget"). The insect lives in the Levant and southern Europe on a species of small evergreen oak (kermes oak) and in ancient Europe were the main source of red and scarlet dye. The dye is prepared from the dried bodies of pregnant females, which alive resemble small roundish grains about the size of peas and cling immobile to the tree on which they live. From this fact kermes dye was, for a long time, mistaken as being from a seed or excrescence of the tree, and the word for it in Greek was kokkos, literally "a grain, seed" (see cocco-). This was passed to Latin as coccum, coccus "berry [sic] yielding scarlet dye," in late use "scarlet color, scarlet garment."
So important was kermes (coccus) as a commercial source of scarlet dye that derivatives of the name for it have displaced the original word for "red" in many languages, such as Welsh coch (from Latin), Modern Greek kokkinos. Also compare Russian čcermnyj "purple-red," Old Church Slavonic čruminu. Compare also crimson (n.).
Kermes dyes have been found in burial wrappings in Anglo-Scandinavian York, but the use of kermes dyes seems to have been lost in Europe from the Dark Ages until early 15c. It fell out of use again with the introduction of cochineal (the word for which itself might be from coccus) from the New World.
kern (n.)
1680s, "part of a metal type projecting beyond the body," as the head of an -f- or the tail of a -j-. According to Century Dictionary this is identical with kern "a grain" (see kernel), but OED says it is from French carne "projecting angle, quill of a pen" (12c.), Old North French form of Old French charne "hinge, pivot," from Latin cardinem "hinge." Related: Kerned "having the top or bottom projecting beyond the body;" kerning.
kernel (n.)
"edible substance in a nut or the stone of a fruit," Old English cyrnel "seed, kernel, pip," from Proto-Germanic *kurnilo- (source also of Middle High German kornel "a grain," Middle Dutch cornel "coarse meal"), from the root of corn "seed, grain" (from PIE root *gre-no- "grain") + -el, diminutive suffix. Figurative sense of "core or central part of anything" is from 1550s.
kerosene (n.)
"mixture of liquid hydrocarbons used as an illuminating or heating fluid," 1852, from Greek kēros "wax" (see cere) + chemical suffix -ene. Coined irregularly by Canadian geologist Abraham Gesner (1797-1864), who discovered how to distill it c. 1846. So called because it contains paraffin (hence the British English name, paraffin oil).
*kerp-
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to gather, pluck, harvest."
It forms all or part of: carpe diem; carpel; carpet; carpo- (1) "fruit;" excerpt; harvest; scarce; scarcity.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit krpana- "sword," krpani "shears;" Greek karpos "fruit," karpizomai "make harvest of;" Latin carpere "to cut, divide, pluck;" Lithuanian kerpu, kirpti "to cut;" Middle Irish cerbaim "cut;" Old English hærfest "autumn."
kersey (n.)
type of coarse woolen cloth, common 14c.-16c., late 14c., said to be from the name of the village in Suffolk, which supposedly is connected with the original manufacture of the cloth.
kerygma (n.)
"preaching," 1879, from Greek kērygma "proclamation, that which is cried by a herald, public notice," used in the Greek New Testament for "preaching," from kēryssein "to proclaim, to cry (as a herald)," from or related to kēryx "herald, messenger," a word of uncertain origin, perhaps from PIE root *kar- (2) "to praise loudly," but Beekes says probably pre-Greek. Related: Kerygmatic.
kestrel (n.)
kind of small falcon, windhover, c. 1600, earlier castrell (15c.), probably from Old French cresserele (13c.), earlier cercelle (Modern French crécelle), a word of obscure origin. Perhaps it is related to French crecerelle "rattle," from Latin crepitacillium "small rattle," diminutive of crepitaculum "noisy bell, rattle," from crepitare "to crackle, rattle;" possibly from the old belief that their noise frightened away other hawks. The unetymological -t- probably developed in French.
ketamine (n.)
1966, from keto- (before vowels ket-), combining form of ketone, + amine.
ketch (n.)
kind of small, strong, two-masted sailing vessel, 1650s, earlier catch (mid-15c.), cache (late 14c.), probably from Middle English cacchen "to capture, ensnare, chase" (see catch (v.)). Compare the sense development in yacht.
ketchup (n.)
1680s, also spelled catsup which form first appeared in Jonathan Swift's 1730 poem A Panegyrick on the D--n. This spelling is still in use in U.S., influenced by cat and sup.
In some of the earliest uses described as an East Indian sauce made with fruits and spices, with spelling catchup. If this stated origin is correct, it might be from Tulu kajipu, meaning "curry" and said to derive from kaje, "to chew." Yet the word, usually spelled ketchup, is also described in early use as something resembling anchovies or soy sauce. It is said in modern sources to be from Malay (Austronesian) kichap, a fish sauce, possibly from Chinese koechiap "brine of fish," which, if correct, perhaps is from the Chinese community in northern Vietnam [Terrien de Lacouperie, in "Babylonian and Oriental Record," 1889, 1890].
Lockyer's 1711 book "An Account of Trade in India" says: "Soy comes in Tubs from Jappan, and the best Ketchup from Tonqueen [Vietnam]; yet good of both sorts, are made and sold very cheap in China." This suggests that the English were buying in India sauces, which they called ketchup, that were imported from elsewhere and possibly were not all of a single national recipe.
The prepared ingredient appears in English cookbooks by the 1680s; by the 1720s a homemade sauce of mushrooms was made in imitation of it. "Apicius Redivivus; or, the Cook's Oracle," by William Kitchiner, London, 1817, devotes 7 pages to recipes for different types of catsup (his book has 1 spelling of ketchup, 72 of catsup), including walnut, mushroom, oyster, cockle and mussel, tomata, white (vinegar and anchovies figure in it), cucumber, and pudding catsup. Chambers's Encyclopaedia (1870) lists mushroom, walnut, and tomato ketchup as "the three most esteemed kinds." Tomato ketchup emerged c. 1800 in U.S. and predominated from early 20c. The word ketchup alone, meaning "tomato ketchup," was in use by 1921.
ketone (n.)
chemical group, 1851, from German keton (1848), coined by German chemist Leopold Gmelin (1788-1853) from German Aketon, from French acétone (see acetone). "Appar. an arbitrary variation of acetone, to make a distinction" [Century Dictionary]. Its combining form is keto-. Related: Ketonic.
ketosis (n.)
1900, from keto-, combining form of ketone, + -osis.
kettle (n.)
"metal vessel used for boiling or heating liquids over a flame," Old English cetil, citel (Mercian), from Proto-Germanic *katilaz (compare Old Saxon ketel, Old Frisian zetel, Middle Dutch ketel, Old High German kezzil, German Kessel), which usually is said to be derived from Latin catillus "deep pan or dish for cooking," a diminutive of catinus "deep vessel, bowl, dish, pot," from Proto-Italic *katino-.
One of the few Latin loan-words in Proto-Germanic, along with *punda- "measure of weight or money" (see pound (n.1)) and a word relating to "merchant" that yielded cheap (adj.). "[I]t is striking that all have something to do with trade" [Don Ringe, "From Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Germanic," Oxford 2006]. Perhaps the Latin word was confused with a native Germanic one.
Spelling with a -k- (c. 1300) probably is from influence of Old Norse cognate ketill. The smaller sense of "tea-kettle" is attested by 1769.
Kettle of fish "complicated and bungled affair" (1715), sometimes is said to be from a Scottish custom of a kettle full of fish cooked al fresco at a boating party or picnic, but this custom is not attested by that phrase until 1790. Perhaps it is rather a variant of kittle/kiddle "weir or fence with nets set in rivers or along seacoasts for catching fish" (c. 1200, in the Magna Charta as Anglo-Latin kidellus), from Old French quidel, probably from Breton kidel "a net at the mouth of a stream."
Kettle was used in geology for "deep circular hollow in a river bed or other eroded area, pothole" (1866), hence kettle moraine (1883), one characterized by such features.
kettledrum (n.)
1540s, from kettle + drum (n.). So called for its shape. Related: Kettledrummer.
*keu-
also *skeu- Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to see, observe, perceive."
It forms all or part of: Anschauung; caution; cautious; caveat; kudos; precaution; scavenger; scone; sheen; show.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit kavih "wise, sage; seer, poet;" Avestan kauui- "seer, poet, wise man;" Middle Iranian škoh "splendor, majesty;" Latin cautio "care, foresight," cautus "careful, heedful," cavere "beware, take heed;" Greek kydos "glory, fame;" Lithuanian kavoti "tend, safeguard;" Armenian cucanem "I show;" Old Church Slavonic čudo "wonder;" Czech (z)koumati "to perceive, be aware of;" Serbian čuvati "watch, heed;" Old English sceawian "to look at," Middle Dutch schoon "beautiful, bright," properly "showy," Old High German scouwon "to watch."
*keue-
*keuə-, Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to swell," also "vault, hole."
It forms all or part of: accumulate; accumulation; cave; cavern; cavity; coeliac; church; codeine; coelacanth; coeliac; coelomate; concave; cumulate; cumulative; cumulus; enceinte; excavate; kirk; kymatology; Kyrie eleison.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit svayati "swells up, is strong;" Greek kyein "to swell," koilos "hollow, hollowed out, spacious, deep;" Latin cumulus "a heap, pile, mass, surplus;" Lithuanian šaunas "firm, solid, fit, capable;" Middle Irish cua "hollow;" Armenian soyl "cavity."
Kevlar
registered trademark (DuPont) for a synthetic fiber developed there c. 1965; probably an invented word of no etymology.
kew
1939, as a clipped form of thank you.
kewl
1996 as a graphic representation of a casual pronunciation of cool (adj.).
kewpie (n.)
1909, American English, coined by their inventor and illustrator, Rose C. O'Neill (1874-1944), as an altered form of a diminutive of Cupid. Kewpie doll is from 1916.
kex (n.)
"dry, hollow plant stem," early 14c., of uncertain origin. Klein says ultimately from Latin cicuta "hemlock."
keyboard (n.)
1819, from key (n.1) in sense of "mechanism of a musical instrument" + board (n.1). Originally of pianos, organs, etc., extended to other machines 1846. The verb is first recorded 1926 (implied in keyboarding).
keychain (n.)
also key-chain, 1849, from key (n.1) + chain (n.). Earlier in the same sense was key-ring (1889), key-band (mid-15c.).
keyhole (n.)
1590s, from key (n.1) + hole (n.).
keyless (adj.)
Keynesian
1937 (adj.), 1942 (n.), from name of British economist John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946).
keynote (n.)
also key-note, "lowest note of a musical scale, basis of a tonal key, the tonic," 1776, from key (n.1) in sense of "musical scale" + note (n.). The keynote is the given note on which the melodic and harmonic relationships in the scale are built, and it gives its name to the key. Figurative sense of "leading idea, central principle" is from 1783; keynote speech is 1887, American English.
keypad (n.)
"handheld pad of labelled buttons to work electronics," 1968, from key (n.1) + pad (n.).
keypunch (n.)
also key-punch, 1933, from keyboard (which operated it) + punch (v.), which is what it did to the cards inserted in it to record data.
keystone (n.)
"stone in the middle of an arch (typically the uppermost stone), which holds up the others," 1630s, earlier simply key (1520s), from key (n.1) in figurative sense of "that which holds together other parts," or from its Middle English architectural sense "projecting ornament of at the intersections of ribs of vaulted or flat ceilings" (mid-14c.). Being the last put in, it is regarded as "keying," or locking together, the whole structure.
Figurative sense "chief element of a system" is from 1640s. Pennsylvania was called the Keystone State because of its position (geographical and political) in the original American confederation, occupying the middle (7th) place in the "arch" of states along the Atlantic, between eastern states and southern ones. Keystone cops were the bumbling police in the slapstick silent movies produced by Keystone Studios, formed in 1912 in Edendale, Calif., by Canadian-born U.S. film director Mack Sennett (1884-1960).
keystroke (n.)
1902, from key (n.1) + stroke (n.). Not in common use until the rise of computers. As a verb, by 1966 (implied in keystroking).
keyword (n.)
also key-word, "word which serves as a guide to other words or matters," 1807, from key (n.1) in the figurative sense + word (n.). Originally in reference to codes and ciphers. In reference to information retrieval systems, "word from the text chosen as indicating the contents of a document" (1967).
Keziah
fem. proper name, biblical daughter of Job, from Hebrew Qetzi'ah, literally "cassia," the aromatic tree that produces cinnamon.
KGB
national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991, attested from 1955 in English, initialism (acronym) of Russian Komitet gosudarstvennoy bezopasnosti "Committee for State Security."
kh-
used to represent sounds not native to English, more or less resembling an aspirated "k," in transliterations from Arabic, Turkish, Russian, etc.
khaki (n.)
"dust-colored cloth," 1857, from Urdu khaki, literally "dusty," from khak "dust," a word from Persian. Used principally at first for uniforms of British cavalry in India, introduced in the Guide Corps, 1846; widely adopted for camouflage purposes in the Boer Wars (1899-1902). It once had overtones of militarism. As an adjective from 1863. Related: Khakis.
khan (n.)
title of sovereign princes in Tatar counties, c. 1400, from Turkic, literally "lord, prince," contraction of khaqan "ruler, sovereign." The word has been known in the languages of Europe since 13c.; compare Medieval Latin chanis, Medieval Greek kanes, Old French chan, Russian khanu. In time it degenerated and became a title of respect. The female form is khanum (1824), from Turkish khanim.