Portsmouth

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A historic seaport on the south coast of England, long known for its naval dockyard ; a city in the United States, such as the one in New Hampshire on the Piscataqua River
2. A coastal city in southern England famous for its naval base ; an American city in New Hampshire or Virginia bearing the same name
3. The historic English naval port on the south coast ; a United States city that shares this name, found in New Hampshire or Virginia

Etymology: Portsmouth is a place name, and its history is written into its components. The first element, "port," comes from Old English "port," a harbour or town, borrowed from Latin "portus," a harbour. The second element is "muða," an Old English word for the mouth of a river or harbour, the opening where water flows out to sea. Together they describe a town at the mouth of a harbour, and the name is recorded in Old English as Portesmuða, which Middle English later shortened into the form we use. The compound is transparent, so the name reads almost like a description of the place. Many English towns share this pattern, with "mouth" referring to the outlet of a river or sheltered inlet where ships could enter, which is exactly the geography that made the Hampshire settlement important.