英语词源字典 - 在线词源网站

diatonic (adj.)[diatonic 词源字典]: c. 1600, from French diatonique, from Latin diatonicus, from Greek diatonikos, from diatonos "extending; pertaining to the diatonic scale," from dia- (see dia-) + teinein "to stretch" (see tenet).[diatonic etymology, diatonic origin, 英语词源]
diatribe (n.): 1640s (in Latin form in English from 1580s), "discourse, critical dissertation," from French diatribe (15c.), from Latin diatriba "learned discussion," from Greek diatribe "employment, study," in Plato, "discourse," literally "a wearing away (of time)," from dia- "away" (see dia-) + tribein "to wear, rub," from PIE root *tere- (1) "to rub, turn, twist" (see throw (v.)). Sense of "invective" is 1804, apparently from French.
Diazepam (n.): 1961, from (benzo)diazep(ine) + -am, apparently an arbitrary suffix. The element diazo- denotes two nitrogen atoms combined with one hydrocarbon radical.
dib: see dibs.
dibble (n.): "tool to make a hole in the soil (as to plant seeds)," mid-15c., probably from Middle English dibben (perhaps akin to dip) + instrumental suffix -el (1). The verb is from 1580s. Related: Dibbled; dibbling.
dibs (interj.): children's word to express a claim on something, 1915, originally U.S., apparently from earlier senses "a portion or share" and "money" (early 19c. colloquial), probably a contraction of dibstone "a knucklebone or jack in a children's game" (1690s), in which the first element is of unknown origin.
dice (n.): early 14c., des, dys, plural of dy (see die (n.)), altered 14c. to dyse, dyce, and 15c. to dice. "As in pence, the plural s retains its original breath sound, probably because these words were not felt as ordinary plurals, but as collective words" [OED]. Sometimes used as singular 1400-1700.
dice (v.): "to cut into cubes," late 14c., from dice (n.). Meaning "to play at dice" is from early 15c. Related: Diced; dicing.
dicey (adj.): "risky, uncertain" (as the roll of dice), 1940s, aviators' jargon, from dice (n.) + -y (2). Related: Diciness.
dichotomy (n.): c. 1600, from Greek dichotomia "a cutting in half," from dicha "in two, asunder" (related to dis "twice") + temnein "to cut" (see tome).
dick (n.): "fellow, lad, man," 1550s, rhyming nickname for Rick, short for Richard, one of the commonest English names, it has long been a synonym for "fellow," and so most of the slang senses are probably very old, but naturally hard to find in the surviving records. The meaning "penis" is attested from 1891 in Farmer's slang dictionary (possibly British army slang). Meaning "detective" is recorded from 1908, perhaps as a shortened variant of detective.
Dick Whittington: The story is an old one, told under other names throughout Europe, of a poor boy who sends a cat he had bought for a penny as his stake in a trading voyage; the captain sells it on his behalf for a fortune to a foreign king whose palace is overrun by rats. The hero devotes part of his windfall to charity, which may be why the legend attached in England since 16c. to Sir Richard Whittington (d.1423), three times Lord Mayor of London, who died childless and devoted large sums in his will to churches, almshouses, and St. Bartholomew's Hospital.
dickens: exclamation, 1590s, apparently a substitute for devil; probably altered from Dickon, nickname for Richard and source of the surnames Dickens and Dickenson, but exact derivation and meaning are unknown.
dicker (v.): "haggle, bargain in a petty way," 1802, American English, perhaps from dicker (n.) "a unit or package of tens," especially hides (attested from late 13c.), perhaps from Latin decuria "parcel of ten" (supposedly a unit of barter on the Roman frontier; compare German Decher "set of ten things"), from decem "ten" (see ten) on model of centuria from centum.
dickhead (n.): "stupid, contemptible person," by 1969, from dick in the "penis" sense + head.
dicky (n.): "detached shirt front," 1811; "a small bird," 1851; diminutive of dick, but the applications are obscure in both cases.
Dictaphone (n.): trademarked by the Columbia Graphophone Company in 1907; from dictation + -phone. A separate company from 1923.
dictate (v.): 1590s, "to practice dictation, say aloud for another to write down," from Latin dictatus, past participle of dictare "say often, prescribe," frequentative of dicere "tell, say" (see diction). Sense of "to command" is 1620s. Related: Dictated; dictates; dictating.
dictate (n.): 1590s, from Latin dictatum "something dictated," noun use of neuter past participle of dictare (see dictate (v.)).
dictation (n.): 1650s, from Late Latin dictationem (nominative dictatio), noun of action from past participle stem of dictare (see dictate (v.)).