The only free and comprehensive online etymological dictionary of the Spanish language

Word of the Day

dedo m. (Noun) "finger"
12th cent. From Vulgar Latin dicitus. From Latin digitus 'id.' Of unknown origin.
Indo-European
Romance
Asturian deu, Portuguese dedo, dígito, Galician dedo, Catalan dit, French doigt, Italian dito, Aromanian dzeadzit, Romanian: deget, Sardinian didu

In the 3rd or 4th cent. text Appendix Probi we find the line: digitus non dicitus "[the word for 'finger' is] digitus, not dicitus." The author's spelling correction proves how the word was pronounced by common speakers, and offers a rare glimpse of the evolution of Latin into Romance languages such as Spanish.

Corominas, J. & J. Pascual. Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e híspanico. 6 vols. Madrid: Gredos. 1991-1997.
Dictionnaire Étymologique Roman. Online. Ed. by É. Buchi & W. Schweickard. 2018. http://www.atilf.fr/DERom.
Real Academia Española. Diccionario de la lengua española. Online. 23rd ed. Madrid: Espasa Calpa. 2014. http://www.rae.es/.
Sihler, A. New Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin. Oxford University Press. 2008.

12 August 2019 - Update 3.92

Final updates in preparation for a particularly large data update coming at the end of the month.

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The Online Etymological Dictionary of Spanish is a free etymological dictionary of the Spanish language launched on August 6, 2016. An etymology is not a definition but a history of a word over time. This site provides an account of the development of the Spanish language as best as historical linguists are able to ascertain in a way that is accessible both by laymen and academics. If you enjoy using this dictionary, please consider donating to help keep this site alive.