ETYMOLOGY

Does it have to do with pea coats? Or maybe Latin scribes?

Here’s (at least) one interesting way station each of these common words made on its journey to the present day, whether it’s an analysis of the Latin roots, a hypothesis about a proto-Indo-European origin, or a pivotal change in meaning.

The story behind which orange came first involves Arab trade routes and a bunch of old phrases that mean 'orange apple.'

It’s another in a long line of etymologies that doesn’t have one clear-cut answer, but a few plausible (and interesting) possible explanations.

The tongue-in-cheek—and superstitious—saying "break a leg" has several possible origins in the theater world.

Whoever started 'from scratch’ didn’t actually do it in the kitchen—and ‘scratch’ has nothing to do with clawing ingredients together with your bare hands.

This very German word became embedded in the American vernacular—but not before German politicians tried to ban kindergarten entirely.

Understanding the difference between ‘immigrate’ and ‘emigrate’ requires a fun little dive into the world of Latin prefixes.

'Fall off the wagon,' which is typically used to describe someone who has begun drinking alcohol after a period of abstinence, does not actually involve anyone tumbling off a horse-drawn carriage.

It started centuries ago, when puddings contained spices, cereal, and potentially putrid minced meat.

Lame duck presidents date back to the beginning of U.S. history, but we didn’t start calling them that until the 20th century.

It all started as a reminder about which relatives the Catholic Church prohibited you from marrying.