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English is one of the world’s most porous languages. It has borrowed, absorbed, and absolutely stolen words from nearly every language it has come into contact with over 1,500 years. The result is a vocabulary where ‘coffee’ is Arabic, ‘jungle’ is Hindi, and ‘ketchup’ started life as a fish sauce in southeast China.
Here are 12 common English words that came from other languages, plus the surprising stories behind each one.
Key Takeaways
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An estimated 80% of English vocabulary comes from other languages.
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Latin and French are the biggest sources (around 60% combined).
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Many everyday words like ‘coffee’ and ‘cookie’ arrived in English within the last few centuries.
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Knowing word origins can speed up your learning of related languages.
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Etymology often reveals trade routes, colonization, and cultural exchange.
Where English Gets Its Words
Linguists estimate that around 80% of English vocabulary has been borrowed from other languages. The two largest contributors are Latin (around 29%) and French (around 29%), reflecting the Norman conquest of 1066 and centuries of Catholic scholarship.
But beyond those two, English has absorbed words from at least 350 other languages: Dutch sailors, Italian artists, Indian spice traders, Japanese cultural exports, and Arab mathematicians have all left their fingerprints. Below are 12 of the most surprising examples.
1. Cartoon (Italian)
Cartoon comes directly from the Italian cartone, which literally means cardboard or thick paper. Renaissance artists used heavy paper for preliminary sketches before transferring designs to frescos or canvas. The word migrated into English in the 17th century and eventually came to mean any humorous drawing.
2. Metropolis (Greek)
Metropolis is a mash-up of two Greek words: métron (μέτρον, measure) and pólis (πόλης, city). The same pólis root gives us ‘police,’ ‘politics,’ ‘policy,’ and ‘metropolitan.’ Greek roots dominate scientific and academic English in ways most speakers never notice.
3. Cookie (Dutch)
Cookie is one of the most American-sounding English words, but it isn’t English at all. It comes from the Dutch koekje, the diminutive form of koek (cake). Dutch immigrants brought the word to colonial New York in the 1600s, and it has been firmly American ever since.
4. Biscuit (Latin / French)
Biscuit comes from the Latin bis coctum, meaning “twice baked.” The word entered English through French and originally referred to a hardened bread that could survive long sea voyages. Modern usage has split: in British English, biscuits are what Americans call cookies. In American English, biscuits are a soft baked bread.
5. Ketchup (Hokkien Chinese)
Ketchup has one of the strangest etymologies in English. It started as kê-tsiap, a Hokkien Chinese word for a fermented fish sauce from southeastern China. British and Dutch traders brought the sauce home in the 18th century. Over time, recipes evolved to use mushrooms, walnuts, and eventually tomatoes. The name stayed.
6. Karaoke (Japanese)
Karaoke combines two Japanese words: kara (空, empty) and ōkesutora (オーケストラ, orchestra). Together they mean “empty orchestra,” a reference to backing tracks without vocals. Japanese inventor Daisuke Inoue is widely credited with creating the modern karaoke machine in the early 1970s.
7. Coffee (Arabic)
Coffee took a long journey into English. It started as the Arabic qahwa (قهوة), became kahve in Turkish, then koffie in Dutch, and finally coffee in English in the late 16th century. The drink itself originated in Ethiopia and Yemen, and its name traveled with the trade.
8. Entrepreneur (French)
Entrepreneur comes from the Old French entreprendre, meaning “to undertake” or “to take on (a business).” The verb breaks down into entre (between, among) and prendre (to take). English absorbed the word in the early 19th century and gave it the business-specific meaning we use today.
9. Jungle (Hindi)
Jungle comes from the Hindi jangal, which means uncultivated land or wilderness. British colonists in India adopted the term in the 18th century, and Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book (1894) cemented it in English. Today the word evokes dense tropical forest, but the original Hindi was broader.
10. Algebra (Arabic)
Algebra comes from the Arabic al-jabr (الجبر), meaning “the reunion of broken parts.” The term appeared in a 9th-century book by the Persian mathematician al-Khwarizmi (from whose name we also get ‘algorithm’). The Latin translation of his book brought algebra into European mathematics, and the Arabic name traveled with it.
11. Tsunami (Japanese)
Tsunami combines tsu (津, harbor) and nami (波, wave). The word entered English in the early 20th century, replacing the less accurate ‘tidal wave’ as the standard scientific term. The 2004 Indian Ocean disaster made the word familiar to most English speakers worldwide.
12. Shampoo (Hindi)
Shampoo comes from the Hindi chāmpo (चांपो), an imperative verb meaning “to press” or “to massage.” In 18th-century India, chāmpo referred to a head massage with scented oils. British colonists adopted the word and the practice, and over time it shifted to mean hair washing.
Why Knowing Word Origins Helps Language Learners
Etymology isn’t just trivia. When you know that ‘algebra’ comes from Arabic, words like al-zubr (data), al-kohol (alcohol), and al-manakh (almanac) suddenly make sense as part of a pattern. When you know cartoon and cartone share a root, Italian vocabulary feels less foreign.
Every borrowed word is a small history lesson, and every history lesson is a memory anchor. Language learners who pay attention to roots tend to remember vocabulary longer and pick up related languages faster.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many English words come from other languages?
Approximately 80% of English vocabulary has been borrowed from other languages over the centuries. Latin and French together account for around 60% of borrowings.
What’s the most common foreign origin of English words?
Latin and French combined contribute about 60% of borrowed English vocabulary. Other significant contributors include Old Norse, Greek, Arabic, Hindi, German, Spanish, and Italian.
Why does English borrow so many words?
Three main reasons: invasion (the Norman Conquest brought thousands of French words), trade (sailors and merchants imported words with goods), and colonization (the British Empire absorbed vocabulary from every continent it touched).
Is English a Germanic language despite all these borrowings?
Yes. English is still classified as a West Germanic language because its grammar, core vocabulary, and oldest words come from Germanic roots. The borrowed vocabulary sits on top of that Germanic foundation.
Does knowing word origins help me learn new languages?
Yes, significantly. Recognizing shared roots between English and another language gives you a head start on vocabulary. This is especially useful for learning Romance languages (French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese) because of their shared Latin heritage with English.
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