Word origins

• nematogenOne of the dimorphic forms of the species of Dicyema, which produce vermiform embryos
• Neo-GreekDescribing a style of French painters and architects of the mid-19th century.
• neo-NaziAn adherent of neo-Nazism, any of various (far right, authoritarian, or bigoted) post-World War II Nazi ideologies.
• nervosismA nervous disorder, especially neurasthenia.
• NescaféA brand of instant coffee
• neutroisChiefly of a person: having a neutral gender (being neither male nor female), and having or seeking to have no or reduced physical sexual characteristics; contrasts with agender.
• New RochelleA city in Westchester County, New York, United States.
• Nez PerceA Native American people who live in the Pacific Northwest region (Columbia River Plateau) of the United States.
• Niçoise oliveA dark olive of a cultivar grown primarily in the Alpes-Maritimes region near Nice and the Riviera di Ponente, Italy.
• nicotianineA white waxy amino acid with a hot, bitter taste, extracted from tobacco leaves.
• NîmesA city, the capital of Gard department, Occitania, southern France, formerly in the region of Languedoc-Roussillon.
• noctambuleSynonym of noctambulist
• NoletteA surname.
• nombrilismNavel-gazing.
• nom de clavierA pseudonym used in online communications; a handle.
• nom de webA pseudonym used when publishing on the World Wide Web.
• non-inscritAn independent politician.
• nonpareilleSynonym of nonpareil.
• non partantNot starting; not participating.
• nopaleryA plantation of nopal (a prickly pear cactus of the genus Opuntia, especially Opuntia cochinellifera) used as food for the cochineal insect (Dactylopius coccus), which is raised to produce carmine dye.
• noriteA granular crystalline rock consisting essentially of a triclinic feldspar (such as labradorite) and hypersthene.
• nowedKnotted; tied in a knot.
• noyadeA murder by drowning, especially one of those carried out during the French Reign of Terror.
• nucellusThe tissue which surrounds and protects the embryo and lies inside of the integuments.
• nummuliteA protozoan from the Tertiary period, known only as fossils.
• O'BansawinA surname from Abenaki
• objet de vertuAn object of particular interest for reasons of history, workmanship etc.
• objet trouvéSynonym of found object.
• ObservantineOf or pertaining to the Observant branch of Franciscan friars
• OclairA surname from French.
• octaplesSynonym of octapla.
• octavateTo resonate or sound one octave higher or lower.
• oculistAn eye doctor: either an ophthalmologist or an optometrist.
• officialityThe charge, office, court, or jurisdiction of an official.
• old fogeyAn old and overly conservative person.
• olefiantThat produces oil
• oleomargarineA fatty substance obtained by solidifying purified beef fat, used to make the butter substitute margarine; also, (US) the butter substitute produced in this way, margarine.
• olivasterOf the color of the olive; tawny.
• oogoneAn oogonium.
• ooh la laA reply implying pretentiousness; often in response to another person's use of a big word, especially a loanword that English got from French.
• -oonForming nouns, mainly in borrowed words.
• opera bouffeA type of French comic opera, typified by everyday characters and ludicrous situations.
• opinionistOne fond of his own notions, or unduly attached to his own opinions.
• orceina dye, related to litmus, that is extracted from the lichen Rocella tinctoria; used as a microscopic stain and as a food colouring
• orcinThe organic compound 3,5-dihydroxytoluene, found in many lichens and synthesizable from toluene.
• orfrayThe osprey.
• organzineA kind of double thrown silk of very fine texture; silk twisted like a rope with different strands, so as to increase its strength.
• orillonA semicircular or squared off projection made at the shoulder of a bastion for the purpose of covering the retired flank, found in old fortresses.
• orsellic acidAn acid found in certain lichens, such as orchil.
• ossatureA skeletal framework; an underlying structure.
• ostensorymonstrance
• osteochondrophytea tumor composed of bone and cartilage
• osteophyteA small, abnormal growth of bone (exostosis, bone spur) that forms along joint margins.
• otoconiumSynonym of otolith.
• ouarineA howler monkey (Alouatta spp.).
• outréBeyond what is customary or proper; extravagant.
• ouvrierismThe glorification of manual laborers, often in opposition to the leadership of labor or socialist movements.
• oxy-Sharp, keen, acute, pungent, acid
• pacotilleSomething of little or no value exchanged for something valuable, originally goods exchanged for slaves.
• paduasoyA rich and heavy silk material.
• pair of shoesA case or situation that is different from another.
• paleothereAny extinct mammal of the genus Palaeotherium.
• paleotherianOf or relating to Palaeotherium.
• palliasseA thin mattress or under bed stuffed with straw.
• pallisandera dense, heavy wood, similar to teak or mahogany, mostly from species of Dalbergia and Pterocarpus, as well as Machaerium
• palmitic acidOne of the most common saturated fatty acids; it is found in all animal and most vegetable oils and fats; it is used in the manufacture of soap etc.
• pamperdyA form of eggy bread or French toast, the egg mixture being poured onto the bread during cooking.
• pampreAn ornament, composed of vine leaves and bunches of grapes, used for decorating spiral columns.
• panacheriePanache; flamboyant style.
• panéedBreaded; coated in breadcrumbs or breading.
• pan-panA radio call indicating a minor emergency requiring some assistance, or priority in handling, but not endangering the safety of the vessel or those aboard.
• papessA female pope, i.e. the fictitious Pope Joan.
• papeterieA case or box containing paper and writing materials.
• para-beside, alongside
• paragreleA lightning conductor erected, as in a vineyard, for drawing off the electricity in the atmosphere in order to prevent hailstorms.
• paratoniaA form of hypertonia with an involuntary variable resistance (i.e. reduced ability of a muscle to stretch) during passive movement.
• paratonicRelating to paratonia.
• parbuckleA kind of purchase for hoisting or lowering a cylindrical burden, as a cask. The middle of a long rope is fastened aloft, and both ends of the rope are looped under, then over the cylinder and looped back towards the attachment point. The object rests in the loops, and rolls upward in them as the rope ends are hauled up, or downward when the ends are payed out.
• pardessusA pardessus de viole; a bowed stringed instrument with a fretted neck and five or six strings, the highest pitched member of the viol family.
• pari-mutuelAny betting system in which all bets of a particular type are placed together in a pool; taxes and a house take are removed, and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among all placed bets.
• Paris of the EastA major city that is considered as magnificent or culturally significant as Paris.
• parleyvooThe French language, especially as understood by an English person.
• parloirA room set aside for visitors in a monastery or convent, where they can talk to residents.
• parrelA sliding loop of rope or metal, around the mast of a ship, to which a yard or gaff is fitted.
• parseméSprinkled, scattered (usually with something).
• partie carréeA group of four people, especially consisting of two couples, or of two men and two women.
• pasilalya universal language
• passadeA pass or thrust.
• pass-diceThe game of passage.
• passementerieA decorative piece of lace or other cloth on clothes.
• passguardAn L-shaped piece of armor worn over one arm (typically the left arm), which generally kept it in a bent position and protected it during jousts.
• pasticheurOne who mimics the literary or artistic style of another.
• pattéNarrow at the inner end, and very broad at the other end, or having its arms of that shape
• pavesadeA canvas screen, formerly sometimes extended along the side of a vessel in battle, to conceal from the enemy the operations on board.
• pays d'étatAny of several provinces of pre-Revolutionary France which retained their own local assemblies.
• peau de soieA heavy closely-woven silk fabric, faced with satin on both sides.
• pébrineA parasitic disease affecting silkworms.
• Pecan IslandA region of Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, United States; named after the highland.
• PecheurA surname. of French origin
• pelageFur, hair, or any other form of the coat of a mammal.