English Wordbook/O

Staff O of the English Wordbook.

Basic abbreviations:

• OE = Old English
• ME = Middle English
• PG = Or-theedish
• SC = Scots
• SW = Swedish
• Dan. = Danish
• ON = Old Norse
• OS = Old Saxon
• NHG = New Hightheech
• IC = Icelandish
• H.IC = High Icelandish
• Du. = Netherlandish
• Fris. = Freesish

For a full list of etymological and other abbreviations used in these wordlists, see: Offshortenings.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Chancery English	Class	Anglish/English
		Attested	Unattested
oasis	n	-	win (cf. Ic. vin)
obedient	adj	hearsome, law-abiding	bowel (<OE beogol), buxom, eathmood (<OE eaþmod)
obedience	n	hearsomeness	buxomness, youngerdom, hearness, thegning
obelisk	n	needle, shaft	stonerock (<OE stanrocc)
obese	adj	full, podgy, overweight	fatsoughty (cf. NHG fettsüchtig)
obey	vb	heed, fulfill, follow, bow, give in, give way, meet	-
obfuscate	vb	becloud, muddy	-
obituary	n	-	Roufrithsoned Engliſh: byodening (cf. "by-" + "yode" +"-en" + "-ing")
object	n	ware, thing, mark, body, goal, end
objection	n	gripe, againsay	gaintale
objectionable	adj	-	frainworthy
objective	n/adj	goal, target; fair-minded, open-minded	unsided
objectivity	n	open-mindedness, evenhandedness	unsidedness
obligate	vb	bind, make	-
obligation	n	must, binding, making	needyness/neediness (<OE néadignes), mustdeed
obligatory	adj	bound, binded	must, must-do, mustdo, mustdeed, needy
obliged	adj	bound	writhen (<OE gewriþen)
obliging	adj	willing-hearted
oblique	adj	slanting, sideways	sheel (<OE sċeolh and akin to Du scheel)
obliquely	adv	aslant	athwart
oblivion	n	forgetfulness, unawareness	forgottenhood
oblivious	adj	clueless, careless, heedless, unwitted	-
obrium	n	shame	-
obscene	adj	foul, lewd, shameless	-
obscure	vb	darken, bedim, befog, overmist, overshadow	thester
obscure	adj	thester, dim, bedimmed, unlit, swart, overmisted, shady	unswotel, dighel (<OE deagol, cf. SW. dölja/IC. dylja; spelling derived from ME diȝel of same meaning), deagle (<OE dígol)
obsequious	adj	cringing, beggarly, bootlicking, brownnosing, fawning, groveling, sniveling, spineless	-
observant	adj	awake, open-eyed	yeming
observe	vb	follow, goose-step; eye, behold, catch, mark, look at, witness; mind, watch, keep an eye on, bewatch, oversee	yeme (<OE gieman), umwlat (<OE ymbwlātian), beaughten (<NHG. beachten, beobachten) see aught
observer	n	witness, onlooker, beholder	-
obsess	vb	grip	-
obsessive compulsive disorder	n	-	brainlock
obsidian	n	-	ravenflint (cf. Ic. hrafntinna) rownglass (cf. Du. lavaglas)
obsolete	adj	outworn, rust, timeworn	out of brook forold (cf. Dn. forældet/NHG. veraltet)
obstacle	n	foreset, block, hurdle	-
obstinate	adj	headstrong, willful, steadfast	-
obstetrics	n	-	birthhelp (cf. NHG geburtshilfe)
obstruct	vb	block, fetter, hamstring, shackle, hold up	forslow, forset (<OE forsettan)
obstruction	n	hindering, hinderness, hitch	-
obtain	vb	get, reap, win, net, come by, draw, land	fang, beget, awin (<OE āwinnan and <ME awinnen)
obvious	adj	straightforward	bare-nebbed, swotel, openknowledgeful (cf. NHG offenkundig)
obviously	adv	sheerly	markedly, opensightly (cf. NHG offensichtlich)
occasion	n	time; opening	sele (<OE sæl), meal
occasional	adj	here and far between	-
occasionally	adv	here and there, now and then	-
occidental	n/adj	western	-
occipital bone	n	-	skullend, backskull
occupied	adj	busy, tied-up	beset (cf. Du bezet, NHG besetzt)
occupy	vb	-	beset (cf. Du bezetten, NHG besetzten)
occur	vb	befall, happen, come about	sheen (<OE sceon), betide
occurrence	n	befall, happening	sheening (<OE ġescēon akin to NHG Geschehen), belimp (<OE belimp)
ocular	adj	-	eyely
ocean	n	mere	highsea, fivelway (<OE fifelwæġ), whaleway (<OE hwælweġ, "sea"), haff (<OE heaf "sea, ocean"), worldwater, the blue moor, the floatway, sailroad, the bree, the brine, the foam
octagon	n	-	eightside
October	n	-	Winterfulth, Winterfulthmonth, Winterfullmoonmonth (<OE)
octopus	n	-	armfish, eightfoot (calque from Greek), inkfish (calque from German)
ode	n	song	-
Odin	n	Weden, Woden	-
odds	n	likelihood; at odds: out of step	-
odour	n	smell, stench	duft
oenophilia	n	-	winelust
oesophagus	n	-	kiteway
offend	vb	smite, upset, gall, wound, anger	grill, shend, beloath (cf. NHG beleidigen)
offensive	adj	loath, loathsome	-
offer	vb/n	n: bid vb: agive, bequeath	n: shore
offering	n	gift, handout	shoring
office	n	-	ambight (calque), needright, note (<OE notu), shire, week (<OE wice)
officer	n	beadle, sheriff	ambighter, ambight (<OE ambeht), shireman
official	n/adj.	steward, sheriff, reeve; acknowledged	-
-oid	sfx	-	-hew (<OW -hīwe)
oil	n/vb	slick, wax, fat	lime, fattybree, smearstuff (German:Schmierstoff)
ointment	n	salve	-
okay	adj	all right	-
old fashioned	adj	stick-in-the-mud, old time, old world, old line	-
Old Testament	n	-	Old Bond, Lawsetness (OE ǽgesetnes)
oleaginous	adj	fatty	limy
olfactory	adj	smell	-
-ology	sfx	-lore	-
omen	n	boding, foreshadowing, token, warning, straw in the wind, writing on the wall	foretoken
ominous	adj	doomy, ill-boding, black-boding, threatening, bodeful	-
omit	vb	leave out, drop	outlet (cf. NHG auslassen; pron. out-LET), waylet (cf. Du. weglaten)
omnipotent	adj	almighty	-
omniscient	adj	all-knowing, alwitty (from "The Prick of Conscience")	-
onomatopoeia	n	-	hearword, clang-aping (calque of NHG. Schallnachahmung) wordmaking (calque of the greek onoma "word, name" + poiein "compose, make"), loudwork (calque of NHG. Lautmalerei), loudedighting
onion	n	-	ramson, chipe (<OE cípe) ramps (<OE hramsa)
opera	n	-	singplay
operate	vb	work, run, undertake	medical: scythe, snithe bedrive (cf. NHG betreiben)
operation	n	-	medical: scything, snithing military/police: undertaking
opinion	n	thought, think-so, what one thinks, the way one sees things	wen (<OE), atlum (<ON ætlum), meaning (cf. NHG Meinung), onsight (cf. NHG Ansicht)
opossum	n	-	whitedeer (cf. Powhatan aposoum)
opponent	n	witherling	withstander, witherman
opportune	adj	timely, well-timed	haply (<OE gehæplice)
opportunity	n	opening	-
oppose	vb	be against, withstand; fight, go against, againstand, buck	again-go, hild, sake
opposite	n	-	gainmatch, witherdeal, gaindeal (cf. NHG gegenteil), withersake, witherthing
opposite	adj	withering	overright (Dorset), athwart (with object), fornent (Northern)
opposition	n	withstander	gainstanders, witherers
oppressed	adj	downtrodden	-
oppress	vb	tread down	aheavy (<OE āhefigan), athrutch (<OE āthryccan), offthrutch (<OE ofþryccan), fortheen (<OE forþēon), smite (<OE ġesmætean), thrysm (<OE ġeþrysmian), hollow (<OE hōlian), oversim (<OE ofersȳman), sweer (<OE swæran, weigh down)
oppression	n	yoke	nithe, thrutchness (<OE þrycnes)
oppressive	adj		sweer (<OE swǣr)
optimise (optimize)	vb	smoothen, better	winfullen, winfulledge
optimism	n	yaysaying	hopethinking, sunny braining
optimist	n	yaysayer	brightsider, hopethinker, sunny-brainer.
optimistic	adj	-	brightsided, hopethinking, sunny-brained, yaysaying
optimum	adj	best	-
optional	adj	can be waled,	corely
oracle	n	-	godspeaker (<OE godspræce)
oral	adj	uttered; unwritten, spoken	mouthly (cf. NHG mündlich)
orange	adj	yellow-red (or) yellowred	fall
orange	n	-	eastern apple, midricapple (cf. Du. sinaasappel; appelsien; NHG Apfelsine)
orangutan	n	-	rutherwere, red ape
oratory	n		outswettling, beadhouse
orbit	vb/n	go around	spor, pathbow, fallbow, eferfall
orca	n	killer whale	swordwhale (<NHG Schwertwal)
orchard	n	-	nutgrove, nutyard, ovetgrove, ovetyard (for disambiguation with "wortyard")
orchestra	n	-	swaygathering, gleeband
orchid	n	-	ballockwort (<ME beallocwirt)
ordain	vb	foreset; foresay; doom; call	tee (<OE teon)
order	n	setup, fettle, kilter command: behest group: board, brotherhood, fellowship char: breed, feather, ilk, kind	fading (<OE fadian)  command: befeal (<ME befelen, OE befēolan, cf. NHG Befehl)
order	vb	bespeak, bid, behest arrange: tidy, set up	bebid (<OE bebod), behight (<OE behatan) command: befeal (<OE befēolan, cf. Du bevelen, NHG. befehlen), for delivery: bestell (cf. NHG/Du. bestellen) arrange: fade
orderly	adj	smooth, well-run, shipshape, trim, spotless, tidy	-
ordination	n	-	hoding (<OE hádung)
organ	n	book, tool biology: innard, wetware	workern (calque)
organization	n	board, brotherhood, fellowship, body	shiplaying (cf Ic. skipuleggja)
organize	vb	tidy (up); make up	stight, shiplay
oriental	adj	eastern	-
orientation	n	-	akinting
orifice	n	hole, mouth, opening	-
origin	n	root, wellspring, beginning, birth, stem, upspring, ere-	point: ord, orspring, onstanding (cf. NHG Entstehung) cause: frume (<OE fruma)
original	adj	ere-, erst, first, new, fresh	ordly, orspringly (<NHG. ursprünglich) (see or- ), firstmost
original	n	ere-, firstling	-
originally	adv	at first, ere-	orspringly (<NHG. ursprünglich)
originate	vb	stem, arise, come from, ere-	andstand (cf. NHG entstehen) upspring (Eng.)
ornament	n	dizen, bedecking	freatwing (<OE frætwung), gleng/gling (<OE gleng) moon-shaped: live (<OE hlīfa)
ornament	vb	bedeck, deck, trim, bedizen	-
ornamentation	n	setoff, trim	-
ornithology	n	-	birdlore
orphan	n	-	sunderling, lonechild, lonegrower, elderless
orthodox	adj	mainstream; by-the-book	liefful (<OE léafful), bookly
orthodoxy	n	lorespell	-
orthography	n	-	rightspelling (<G. Rechtschreibung)
osprey	n	seahawk fish hawk (<SC)	-
ossicle	n	-	earbone
osteology	n	-	bonelore
osteoporosis	n	-	bone brittling, bonebrittleness
ostrich	n	-	strutter (<OE stryta)
outcry	n	uproar	-
outdated	n	outworn, rusty	tided out
outmanoeuvre	vb	outsmart, outshine, outwit	-
outperform	vb	outdo, outshine	-
oval	n	-	eggshape
overbalance	vb	slip, tumble, lose your footing; upset, keel over
overcharge	vb	overload, overweigh	-
overdue	adj	overowed, overripe(ned)
overemphasize	vb	overplay, overshow, overstrain	-
overpopulation	n	overcrowding	-
overpower	vb	forset	-
overtax	vb	overburden, forset	-
ovum	n	-	eggling
oxidize	v	rust, sour
oxygen	n	breath of life	chemistry: sourstuff, breathloft
oxymoron	n	-	sharpdull (calque)
oyster	n	clam	-