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geyser

Etymology and origin of the English word geyser

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From
Old Norse geysa

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈɡiː.zə/ (UK); /ˈɡaɪ.zɚ/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is named after Geysir, a particular hot spring in the Haukadal valley in southwest Iceland,[2][3][4][5][6] literally “the gusher”,[4][6] from Icelandic geysa “to gush”,[2][3][4][5][6] from Old Norse geysa (“to gush”).[2][4][5] It is related to Old English gēotan “to pour”.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

An intermittent hot spring that throws up a column of water (1763 in the OED, 1780 in Barnhart, Etymonline and Merriam-Webster).[7][3][4][5]

Semantic evolution

Foreign writers took the name of this one spring as the general name for spouting hot springs,[4] for which Icelandic itself has other words.[4] In 1878 the name was given to an apparatus for heating water quickly, attached to a bath;[7] in this sense it is chiefly British and often pronounced differently.[5][6] The verb, to gush forth like a geyser, is recorded by Random House.[6][1]

Timeline

  • 1755–65 – Random House's dating.[6]
  • 1763 – an intermittent hot spring (OED).[7]
  • 1780 – Barnhart, Etymonline and Merriam-Webster.[3][4][5]
  • 1878 – a water heater.[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A natural hot spring that from time to time throws up a column of hot water and steam.
  2. (chiefly British) A gas-fired water heater.
  3. A sudden jet of liquid shooting upward.

Verb

  1. To gush or spurt upward like a geyser.

Word family

  • geyseral
  • geyserite
  • gush

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

  • both · also from Old Norse
  • band · also from Old Norse
  • blackmail · also from Old Norse
  • husband · also from Old Norse
  • though · also from Old Norse
  • law · also from Old Norse
  • call · also from Old Norse
  • berserk · also from Old Norse
Cite this entry

“Geyser.” Etymologically, 14 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/geyser. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·