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35,981 English word records · 45,491 etymology sections in this online subset
PARTIAL ENGLISH COVERAGE · FULL CORPUS REMAINS LOCAL6 source sections across 1 headword matching “Rail”. These are separate from the reviewed results below.
railEnglish (en) · Etymology 1Source text
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- Proto-Indo-European *-eti Proto-Indo-European *h₃réǵeti Proto-Italic *regō Latin regō Proto-Indo-European *-tḗr Proto-Indo-European *-om Proto-Indo-European *-trom Proto-Indo-European *-tlom, *-dʰlom Latin -ula Latin rēgulabor. Proto-West Germanic *regulu Old English regol ▲ Latin rēgula Old French reillebor. Middle English rail English rail From Middle English rail, rayl, *reȝel, *reȝol (found in reȝolsticke (“a ruler”)), partly from Old English regol (“a ruler, straight bar”) and partly from Old French reille; both from Latin regula (“rule, bar”), from regō (“to rule, to guide, to govern”); see regular. Doublet of regal, regula, rigol, and rule.
Original Wiktionary entry and references ↗railEnglish (en) · Etymology 1Source text
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- Proto-Indo-European *-eti Proto-Indo-European *h₃réǵeti Proto-Italic *regō Latin regō Proto-Indo-European *-tḗr Proto-Indo-European *-om Proto-Indo-European *-trom Proto-Indo-European *-tlom, *-dʰlom Latin -ula Latin rēgulabor. Proto-West Germanic *regulu Old English regol ▲ Latin rēgula Old French reillebor. Middle English rail English rail From Middle English rail, rayl, *reȝel, *reȝol (found in reȝolsticke (“a ruler”)), partly from Old English regol (“a ruler, straight bar”) and partly from Old French reille; both from Latin regula (“rule, bar”), from regō (“to rule, to guide, to govern”); see regular. Doublet of regal, regula, rigol, and rule.
Original Wiktionary entry and references ↗railEnglish (en) · Etymology 2Source text
From French râle, rale, from Middle French raalle, from Old French rasle. Compare Medieval Latin rallus. Named from its harsh cry, Vulgar Latin *rasculum, from Latin rādere (“to scrape”).
Original Wiktionary entry and references ↗railEnglish (en) · Etymology 3Source text
From Middle French railler.
Original Wiktionary entry and references ↗railEnglish (en) · Etymology 4Source text
From Middle English rail, reil, from Old English hræġl (“garment, dress, robe”). Cognate with Old Frisian hreil, reil, Old Saxon hregil, Old High German hregil (“clothing, garment, dress”).
Original Wiktionary entry and references ↗railEnglish (en) · Etymology 5Source text
Probably from Anglo-Norman raier, Middle French raier.
Original Wiktionary entry and references ↗INDEPENDENT SOURCE LIBRARY
More sources for this spelling
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Chambers (1908)
1908- RailEnglish · e-38699-5064
Rail, rāl, n. a bar of timber or metal extending from one support to another, as in fences, staircases, &c.: one of those steel bars used on the permanent way of a railway, generally of that form known as the T-rail: a b
Read the full source record → - RailEnglish · e-38699-5065
Rail, rāl, v.i. to brawl: to use insolent language.—v.t. to scoff at, affect by railing.—n. Rail′er, one who rails: one who insults or defames by opprobrious language.—adj. Rail′ing, reproachful, insulting.—n. reproachfu
Read the full source record → - RailEnglish · e-38699-5066
Rail, rāl, n. a genus of wading-birds with a harsh cry.—n. Rail′-bird, the Carolina rail.—Golden rail, a rail snipe. [O. Fr. rasle (Fr. râle)—Old Dut. ratelen, to rattle.]
Read the full source record → - RailEnglish · e-38699-5067
Rail, rāl, v.i. (Spens.) to flow or pour down.
Read the full source record → - RailEnglish · e-38699-5068
Rail, rāl, n. a robe—now only in Night-rail.
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