echo

Where does the word "echo" come from? It comes from Greek ekho, and was adopted directly into English (1300s).

Echo’s story begins in Greek: ekho meant “a repeating sound, the nymph Echo.” A nymph in myth cursed to only repeat the words of others. It reached English by 1300s as echo. Settled as the word for a reflected sound. Today, echo means a sound heard again after being reflected off a surface.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient ekho "a repeating sound, the nymph Echo", a nymph in myth cursed to only repeat the words of others.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1300s echo "a sound reflected back to the listener", settled as the word for a reflected sound.