Kangaroo entered English from Guugu Yimidhirr in 1770. The popular claim that it meant “I don’t know” is widely rejected.

Some English verbs were created by removing a real or imagined ending from an older noun, as in editor to edit and burglar to burgle.

This old English idiom compares a tiny molehill with a huge mountain to show how people can greatly exaggerate small problems.

“Taboo” entered English from Tongan “tapu,” a word meaning forbidden, sacred, or set apart, with relatives across Polynesian languages.