英语词源字典 - 在线词源网站

North Sea [North Sea 词源字典]: Old English norðsæ, usually meaning "the Bristol Channel." The application to the body of water presently so named (late 13c.) is from Dutch (Noordzee, Middle Dutch Noortzee); it lies to the north of Holland, where it was contrasted with the inland Zuider Zee, literally "Southern Sea"). To the Danes, it sometimes was Vesterhavet "West Sea." In English, this had been typically called the "German Sea" or "German Ocean," which follows the Roman name for it, Oceanus Germanicus. "German" persisted on some British maps at least into the 1830s.[North Sea etymology, North Sea origin, 英语词源]
North Star (n.): "Pole Star, Polaris," Middle English norþe sterre (late 14c.); cognates: Middle Dutch noirdstern, German nordstern.
north-bound (adj.): 1903, from north + bound (adj.2).
north-easter (n.): sometimes nor'easter, "wind blowing from the northeast," 1794, from northeast.
northeast: Old English norð east; see north + east. Related: Northeasterly (1743).
northerly (adj., adv.): 1550s, from northern + -ly (2) on pattern of easterly, westerly.
northern (adj.): Old English norþerna, norðerne "northern, Northumbrian, Scandinavian," cognate with Old High German nordroni, Old Norse norroenn (see north). With -erne, suffix denoting direction. Related: Northernmost. Northerner in U.S. geo-political sense is attested from 1831. Northern lights "aurora borealis" first recorded by that name 1721 (earlier north-light, 1706).
Northumbria: Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Norðhymbre, which lay north of the river Humber (Latin Humbri fluminis, c.720), an ancient pre-English river name of unknown origin. Related: Northumbrian. The Northumbrians seem at times to have referred to the Mercians as Southumbrians.
northward (adv.): Old English norðweard; see north + -ward. Related: Northwards.
northwest: Old English norðwest (adv.); from north + west. As a noun from late 14c. Related: Northwestern; northwesterly; northwestward. Northwest Passage first attested c. 1600.
Norway: Old English Norweg, Norþweg from Old Norse Norvegr "north way, a way leading to the north" (see north + way (n.)); contrasted with suthrvegar "south way," i.e. Germany, and austrvegr "east way," the Baltic lands.
Norwegian: c. 1600 (n. and adj.), sometimes in early use Norvegian, from Medieval Latin Norvegia "Norway," from Old Norse Norvegr (see Norway) + -ian.
nose (v.): "perceive the smell of," 1570s; "pry, search," 1640s, from nose (n.). Related: Nosed; nosing.
nose (n.): Old English nosu, from Proto-Germanic *nusus (cognates: Old Norse nös, Old Frisian nose, Dutch neus, Old High German nasa, German Nase), from PIE *nas- "nose" (cognates: Sanskrit nasa, Old Persian naham, Old Church Slavonic nasu, Lithuanian nosis, Latin nasus "nose"). Used of any prominent or projecting part from 1530s. (nose cone in the space rocket sense is from 1949). Used to indicate "something obvious" from 1590s. Meaning "odor, scent" is from 1894.
Kiv, It could bee no other then his owne manne, that had thrust his nose so farre out of ioynte. ["Barnabe Riche His Farewell to Military Profession," 1581]
Pay through the nose (1670s) seems to suggest "bleed." Many extended meanings are from the horse-racing sense of "length of a horse's nose," as a measure of distance between two finishers (1908). To turn up one's nose "show disdain" is from 1818 (earlier hold up one's nose, 1570s); similar notion in look down one's nose (1921). To say something is under (one's) nose "in plain view" is from 1540s.
nose job (n.): "rhinoplasty," 1963, from nose (n.) + job (n.).
nose-bleed (n.): 1848, from nose (n.) + bleed (n.).
nose-dive (n.): "sudden large decrease," 1920, from airplane sense, first attested 1912, from nose (n.) + dive (n.). As a verb from 1915.
nose-ring (n.): 1778 as something to lead an animal by, from nose (n.) + ring (n.1). As something to ornament a person, from 1819.
nosegay (n.): "bunch of flowers," early 15c., from nose (n.) + gay in an obsolete noun sense of "gay or bright thing."
nosey (adj.): see nosy.