Ethel

//ˈɛθɪl// adj, name, noun

adj, name, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The rune ᛟ.
  2. 2
    Alternative form of athel (“tamarisk”). alt-of, alternative

    "For quotations using this term, see Citations:ethel."

  3. 3
    The name of the Latin script letter Œ/œ..
Adjective
  1. 1
    Noble. obsolete

    "[…] that he was of a doughty and ethel stirp. His ayle and eam had both been bellipotent; […]"

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A female given name from Old English, popular at the turn of the 20th century.

    "If it is so false, and base, and hollow, this great world […] why does Ethel Newcome cling to it? Will you be fairer, dear, with any other name than your own?"

  2. 2
    A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Arkansas County, Arkansas.
  3. 3
    A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Greenfield Township, Orange County, Indiana.
  4. 4
    A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana.
  5. 5
    A number of places in the United States:; A town in Attala County, Mississippi.
Show 6 more definitions
  1. 6
    A number of places in the United States:; A town in Macon County, Missouri.
  2. 7
    A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma.
  3. 8
    A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Richmond County, Virginia.
  4. 9
    A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Lewis County, Washington.
  5. 10
    A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Logan County, West Virginia.
  6. 11
    A hamlet in Huron County, Ontario, Canada.

Synonyms

All synonyms
odalodal

Example

More examples

"Ethel blushed harder, and stopped smiling."

Etymology

Etymology 1

Short form of names of Old English origin beginning with Ethel-, æþele (“noble”). First used in the 19th century. Cognate to the Germanic Adela and Adele.

Etymology 2

Learned borrowing from Middle English ethel, from Old English ǣþel, ēþel.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.