Word origins

• nucleinA phosphorus-rich protein found in the nucleus of a cell, later specifically nucleohistone or nucleoprotamine; also, any similar compound present in the cell nucleus.
• NullstellensatzA theorem that establishes a fundamental relationship between geometry and algebra by relating algebraic sets to ideals in polynomial rings over algebraically closed fields.
• oath-helperOne brought into court to swear to the truth and testify on oath on behalf of the accused, to clear them from suspicion of crime.
• Oberalp PassA mountain pass between Uri canton and Grisons canton, Switzerland.
• OberdorfA surname from German.
• Obergruppenführera Nazi party paramilitary rank that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the SA and until 1942 it was the highest rank in the SS
• OberhausA surname from German.
• OberkornA town in Luxembourg, in the commune of Differdange, in the canton of Esch-sur-Alzette.
• OberradenA municipality of Neuwied district, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
• ObringerA surname from German.
• obscurantActing or tending to confound, obfuscate, or obscure.
• ochronosisAbnormal brown pigmentation of tissue (especially cartilage and ligaments), specifically that resulting from the accumulation of a melanin-like pigment derived from homogentisic acid in the metabolic disorder alkaptonuria.
• OcklerA surname from German.
• OdenthalA surname from German.
• odylicOf or pertaining to the od or odyle (“a hypothetical force or natural power, now proved not to exist, which was supposed by Carl Reichenbach and others to inhere in certain people and produce phenomena such as animal magnetism and mesmerism, and to be developed by various agencies, as by chemical or vital action, heat, light, magnets, etc.”).
• OelkersA surname from German.
• OelschlagerA surname from German.
• OetkenA surname from German.
• office landscapeA form of open-plan office space promoted in the early 1950s, typically having irregular geometry and organic circulation patterns.
• OhlingerA surname from German.
• Old KingdomEgypt from the start of the 3rd Dynasty to its disintegration into regional states at the end of the 6th Dynasty.
• Old Low GermanOld Saxon and Old Low Franconian combined
• oliveniteAn orthorhombic copper arsenate mineral with the chemical formula Cu₂AsO₄OH.
• OltmannsA surname from German.
• OmlorA surname from German.
• oophagyThe eating of eggs; (now especially) the cannibalization of subordinate eggs within a homogeneous population or the uterus; particularly as it relates to certain insect and aquatic species.
• OplingerA surname from German.
• OppeltA surname from German.
• optantA person who lives in a region undergoing a change of sovereignty and thus may choose between retaining their old citizenship or opting for the citizenship of the new sovereignty.
• orchestrionA mechanical multiple musical instrument designed to sound like an orchestra or band.
• orders are ordersUsed wryly when someone attempts to justify questionable actions by referring to rules, laws or orders from higher up.
• ordoliberalA proponent of the theories and ideals of ordoliberalism (“a political philosophy that emphasizes the desirability of the government establishing rules to maximize the potential of the free market to produce results”).
• ordoliberalismA political philosophy that emphasizes the desirability of the government establishing rules to maximize the potential of the free market to produce results.
• OrebaughA surname from German.
• Ore MountainsA mountain range dividing Germany and the Czech Republic.
• OrendorffA surname from German.
• orfeA fish, the ide, Leuciscus idus.
• organogenyOrganogenesis.
• organophylyThe direct study of the evolution of the forms of biological organs and systems of organs rather than observation of its supposed ontogenic recapitulation.
• orgastic potencyThe ability to experience full orgasmic gratification while engaging in the sexual act, a condition only possible for people without neuroses.
• OrtenaukreisA rural district of Baden-Württemberg.
• OrtloffA surname from German.
• Ortsgruppenleitera Nazi party political rank and title which existed between 1930 and 1945.
• OrtweinA surname from German.
• OsnabrückAn independent city in Lower Saxony, Germany.
• ostalgiaSynonym of ostealgia.
• OsterkampA surname from German.
• OstheimFormer name of Boikivske selrada: a former selrada (until 1971, a silrada) of Boikivske Raion, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine; known by this name until February 1935.
• ostmarkThe currency unit of the former German Democratic Republic (aka GDR, DDR, East Germany) until 1990, abbreviated DDM.
• OstpolitikThe policies of West Germany under Chancellor Willy Brandt, seeking rapprochement with East Germany and the Soviet Union.
• OstreicherA habitational surname from German
• OttokarA male given name from German.
• overfoldA fold whereby the strata are forced through an angle of more than 90 degrees, so that younger strata lie below older ones.
• overmorrowOn the day after tomorrow.
• overpersonSuperman.
• oversightlyOffering a clear and readily grasped overview (of something).
• OwlglassTill Eulenspiegel, a prankster character in German folklore, depicted with a pet owl and a mirror in his hand.
• owndomProperty.
• OxnerA surname from German.
• PagenstecherA surname from German.
• Palatinate ForestA low-mountain region, located in the Palatinate in Rhineland-Palatinate, in southwestern Germany.
• PalluchA surname.
• palsgraveA count palatinate of the Holy Roman Empire, possessing near-royal powers within his county.
• pandeismA belief in a god who is both pantheistic and deistic, in particular a god who designed the universe and then became it and ceased to exist separately and act consciously with respect to it.
• pannhasscrapple (meat dish)
• panpsychismThe belief that all matter is conscious in some form.
• Panzerschreka portable anti-tank rocket launcher developed by the Germans during WW2
• PapenfussA surname from German.
• paprikahuhnThe chicken paprikash, a popular Hungarian dish.
• ParadeplatzA square in Zurich, Switzerland, known as the location of the headquarters of several Swiss banks.
• paragnathaParagnathi (lobes forming the lower lip, or metastome, of Crustacea).
• paramyotoniaA form of myotonia that worsens with exercise.
• pareidoliaThe tendency to interpret a vague stimulus as something known to the observer, such as interpreting marks on Mars as canals, seeing shapes in clouds, or hearing hidden messages in music.
• PassowA surname from German.
• patchwork familyA blended family; a stepfamily.
• PaulickA surname from German.
• PaulinianSynonym of Paulist (“a person who follows or is associated with Paul the Apostle or his doctrines.”).
• pecking orderThe natural ranking of social status and dominance occurring in a group of birds.
• PeckinpaughA surname from German.
• pedelecA bicycle with an electric motor which assists the rider but only while they are pedalling.
• PeeneA river in north-eastern Germany.
• PeffleyA surname from German.
• PehlA surname from German.
• PeipusA large freshwater lake on the border between Estonia and Russia in Northern Europe. It is the fifth-largest lake in Europe, and the largest in Estonia. The lake consists of three parts: Peipsi (Chudskoe), Pihkva (Pskovskoe), Lämmijärv (Teploe).
• pendellösungbeating pattern seen in diffraction on crystals.
• pendelluftThe effect of air movements between the penultimate branches of the lungs
• penis envyThe unconscious desire of a woman to possess a penis.
• pennalA freshman at a German university.
• peppernutThe edible fruit of a pepperwood tree (California laurel).
• PergandeA surname from German.
• pericambiumA pericycle.
• PernsteinerA surname from German.
• persipanA substance similar to marzipan, but produced from peach or apricot pits instead of almonds.
• personal unionThe situation of two or more states sharing the same monarch, usually also with shared dynastic succession.
• Pfaffenschlag bei Waidhofen an der ThayaA municipality of Waidhofen an der Thaya district, Lower Austria, Austria.
• PfahlerA surname from German.
• pfalzgrafA German representative of the Frankish king (or, later, the Holy Roman Emperor), in a palatial domain of the crown; a count palatine.
• pfeffernussA small gingerbread biscuit, flavoured with spices, eaten especially at Christmas.
• pfeffernusseSynonym of pfeffernuss.
• PfliegerA surname from German.