English word origin

Etymology of eBay

Short for Echo Bay Technology Group, the consulting firm involved with its development. By surface analysis, e- (digital) + bay.

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗

name

A popular Internet auction website.

verb

To put on auction at eBay.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Short for Echo Bay Technology Group, the consulting firm involved with its development. By surface analysis, e- (digital) + bay.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "surf",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "e-",
        "3": "bay",
        "id1": "digital",
        "pos1": "digital"
      },
      "expansion": "By surface analysis, e- (digital) + bay"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "e-",
      "e-#English:_digital"
    ],
    [
      "bay",
      "bay#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A popular Internet auction website."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "32d468eff4db7ed960140adcdfd9908671453df574bad308659f02408937100e",
      "rawRecordSha256": "6fa0f82294d2c4732eee14ea59fdd7fc88d5848eb9a73565ca5f6599c58964ff",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 442022
    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To put on auction at eBay."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "983f348869111cb505f007c8025409784366413229d2ac752f6e34f147004531",
      "rawRecordSha256": "7c1b1bf3ffb259ce923ed45b9c84bde9243fac95201e12a40ba3451eb66d5455",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 442023
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for eBay →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-ZUJheQ