Wanderword

//ˈwɒndəˌwɔːd// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Synonym of Wanderwort (“a loanword that has spread to many different languages, often through trade or the adoption of foreign cultural practices”).

    "Considering the mileage it has achieved as a horizon wanderword in divers shapes representable as sV(l)mV(n)-, the Latin salmo (salmonis) cited by Pliny and Ausonius is vexing as regards its etymology, a quality it shares with many other Roman and Greek [...]"

Synonyms

All synonyms
wanderwort

Example

More examples

"Considering the mileage it has achieved as a horizon wanderword in divers shapes representable as sV(l)mV(n)-, the Latin salmo (salmonis) cited by Pliny and Ausonius is vexing as regards its etymology, a quality it shares with many other Roman and Greek [...]"

Etymology

From wander + word, a calque of German Wanderwort.

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