Online Etymology Dictionary

spoof (n.): "hoax, deception," 1884, spouf, name of a game invented by British comedian Arthur Roberts (1852-1933); sense of "a parody, satirical skit or play" is first recorded 1958, from verb in this sense, attested from 1914.
spook (n.): 1801, from Dutch spook, from Middle Dutch spooc "spook, ghost," from a common Germanic source (cf. German Spuk "ghost, apparition," Middle Low German spok "spook," Swedish spok "scarecrow," Norwegian spjok "ghost, specter," Danish spøg "joke"), of unknown origin. Possible outside connections include Lettish spigana "dragon, witch," spiganis "will o' the wisp," Lithuanian spingu, spingeti "to shine," Old Prussian spanksti "spark."

Meaning "undercover agent" is attested from 1942. The derogatory racial sense of "black person" is attested from 1940s, perhaps from notion of dark skin being difficult to see at night. Black pilots trained at Tuskegee Institute during World War II called themselves the Spookwaffe.
spook (v.): 1867, "to walk or act like a ghost," from spook (n.). Meaning "to unnerve" is from 1935. Related: Spooked; spooking.
spooky (adj.): 1854, "frightening;" 1926, "easily frightened," from spook (v.) + -y (2). Related: Spookily; spookiness.
spool (n.): early 14c., from Old North French spole, espole "a spool" (13c.), from Middle Dutch spoele "a spool," from Proto-Germanic *spolon (cf. Norwegian and Swedish spole, Old High German spuola, German Spule), from PIE root *spel- "to cleave, split" (see spoil).
spool (v.): c.1600, from spool (n.). Related: Spooled; spooling.
spoon (n.): Old English spon "chip, shaving," from Proto-Germanic *spænuz (cf. Old Norse spann, sponn "chip, splinter," Swedish spån "a wooden spoon," Old Frisian spon, Middle Dutch spaen, Dutch spaan, Old High German span, German Span "chip, splinter"), from PIE *spe- "long, flat piece of wood" (cf. Greek sphen "wedge").

The meaning "eating utensil" is c.1300 in English (in Old English such a thing might be a metesticca), probably from Old Norse sponn, which meant "spoon" as well as "chip, tile" (development of the "eating utensil" sense is specific to Middle English and Scandinavian, though Middle Low German spon also meant "wooden spatula"). Spoon-feed is from 1610s; figurative sense is attested by 1864. To be born with a silver spoon in one's mouth is from 1801.
spoon (v.): 1715, "to dish out with a spoon," from spoon (n.). The meaning "court, flirt sentimentally" is first recorded 1831, from slang noun spoon "simpleton" (1799), a figurative use based on the notion of shallowness. Related: Spooned; spooning.
spoonbill (n.): 1670s, from spoon (n.) + bill (2); after Dutch lepelaar (from lepel "spoon").
spoonerism (n.): 1900, but perhaps as early as 1885, involuntary transposition of sounds in two or more words (cf. "a well-boiled icicle" for "a well-oiled bicycle;" "scoop of boy trouts" for "troop of Boy Scouts"), in reference to the Rev. William A. Spooner (1844-1930), warden of New College, Oxford, who was famous for such mistakes.
spoonful (n.): late 13c., from spoon (n.) + -ful.
spoony (adj.): 1812, "foolish;" 1836, "sentimental," from spoon (n.) in sense "silly person" + -y (2).
spoor (n.): "track, trace," 1823, from Afrikaans spoor, from Middle Dutch spor, cognate with Old English spor "footprint, track, trace" (see spurn).
sporadic (adj.): 1650s (implied in sporadical), from Medieval Latin sporadicus "scattered," from Greek sporadikos "scattered," from sporas (genitive sporados) "scattered," from spora "a sowing" (see spore). Originally a medical term, "occurring in scattered instances;" the meaning "happening at intervals" is first recorded 1847. Related: Sporadically.
sporangium (n.): (plural sporangia), Modern Latin, from Greek spora "spore" (see spore) + angeion "vessel" (see angio-).
spore (n.): 1836, from Modern Latin spora, from Greek spora "seed, a sowing," related to sporos "sowing," and speirein "to sow," from PIE *sper- "to strew" (see sprout).
spork (n.): 1909, from spoon (n.) + fork (n.).
sporophyte (n.): from comb. form of Greek spora "spore" (see spore) + -phyte.
sporran (n.): 1818, from Gaelic sporan, Irish sparan "purse," of uncertain origin. Familiarized by Walter Scott (first attested in "Rob Roy").
sport (v.): c.1400, "to take pleasure, to amuse oneself," from Anglo-French disport, Old French desport "pastime, recreation, pleasure," from desporter "to divert, amuse, please, play" (see disport). Sense of "to amuse oneself by active exercise in open air or taking part in some game" is from late 15c. Meaning "to wear" is from 1778. Related: Sported; sporting.
sport (n.): mid-15c., "pleasant pastime," from sport (v.). Meaning "game involving physical exercise" first recorded 1520s. Original sense preserved in phrases such as in sport "in jest" (mid-15c.). Sense of "stylish man" is from 1861, American English, probably because they lived by gambling and betting on races. Meaning "good fellow" is attested from 1881 (e.g. be a sport, 1913). Sport as a familiar form of address to a man is from 1935, Australian English. The sport of kings was originally (1660s) war-making.
sporting (adj.): "characterized by conduct constant with that of a sportsman," 1799 (e.g. sporting chance, 1897), from present participle of sport (v.).
sportive (adj.): 1580s, from sport + -ive. Related: Sportively; sportiveness.
sports (n.): atheltic games and contests, by 1660s, from sport (n.). Meaning "sports section of a newspaper" is 1913. Sports fan attested from 1921. Sportswear is from 1912. Sports car attested by 1914; so called for its speed and power:
I have just returned from the south of France, passing through Lyons, where I visited the [Berliet] works with my car, and was shown the new model 25 h.p. "sports" car, and was so impressed with this that I immediately ordered one on my return to London. [letter in "The Autocar," Jan. 7, 1914]
sportscast (n.): 1938, from sports + ending from broadcast.
sportsman (n.): 1706, from sports + man (n.).
sportsmanship (n.): "conduct worthy of a sportsman," 1745, from sportsman + -ship.
sporty (adj.): 1889, "sportsmanlike;" 1962, "in the style of a sports car," from sport (n.) + -y (2). Related: Sportily; sportiness.
spot (n.): c.1200, "moral stain," probably from Old English splott "a spot, blot, patch (of land)" infl. by Middle Dutch spotte "spot, speck." Other cognates are East Frisian spot "speck," North Frisian spot "speck, piece of ground," Old Norse spotti "small piece." It is likely that some of these are borrowed, but the exact evolution now is impossible to trace.

Meaning "speck, stain" is from mid-14c. The sense of "particular place" is from c.1300. Meaning "short interval in a broadcast for an advertisement or announcement" is from 1923. Proceeded by a number (e.g. five-spot) it originally was a term for "prison sentence" of that many years (1901, American English slang). To put (someone) on the spot "place in a difficult situation" is from 1928. Colloquial phrase to hit the spot "satisfy, be what is required" is from 1868. Spot check first attested 1933. Spot on "completely, accurately" is attested from 1920.
spot (v.): early 15c., "to stain, sully, tarnish" from spot (n.). Sense of "to stain with spots" is attested from mid-15c. Meaning "to see and recognize," is from 1718, originally colloquial and applied to a criminal or suspected person; the general sense is from 1860. Related: Spotted; spotting.
spotless (adj.): c.1300, spotlez; see spot (n.) + -less. Figurative sense is from 1570s. Related: Spotlessly.
spotlight (n.): 1904, from spot (n.) + light (n.). Originally a theatrical equipment; figurative sense is attested from 1916. The verb is first recorded 1923.
spotty (adj.): mid-14c., "marked with spots," from spot (n.). Meaning "unsteady, uneven" is attested from 1932, from a more specific use with reference to painting (1812).
spousal (adj.): 1510s, from spousal (n.) “condition of being espoused, action of marrying,” from Old French esposailles (see espousal).
spouse (n.): c.1200, "a married woman in relation to her husband" (also of men), from Old French spus (fem. spuse), from Latin sponsus "bridegroom" (fem. sponsa "bride"), from masc. and fem. past participle of spondere "to bind oneself, promise solemnly," from PIE *spend- "to make an offering, perform a rite" (see spondee). Spouse-breach (early 13c.) was an old name for "adultery."
spout (v.): early 14c., related to Middle Dutch spoiten "to spout," North Frisian spütji "spout, squirt," Swedish sputa "to spout," and probably Middle Dutch spuwen "to spit" (see spew). Meaning "to talk, declaim" is recorded from 1610s.
spout (n.): late 14c., from spout (v.). It was the slang term for the lift in a pawnbroker's shop, up which articles were taken for storage, hence figurative phrase up the spout "lost, hopeless, gone beyond recall" (1812).
sprag (n.): "prop in a mine," 1841, of unknown origin. Transferred by 1878 to wood blocks, etc., used to brake motor vehicles. As a verb, from 1841. Related: Spragged; spragging.
sprain (n.): c.1600, of uncertain origin. The verb is attested from 1620s. A connection has been suggested to Middle French espraindre "to press out," from Latin exprimere, but the sense evolution is difficult.
sprat (n.): "small European herring," 1590s, variant of sprot, from Old English sprot "a small herring," related to Dutch sprot, and probably connected to sprout.
sprawl (v.): Old English spreawlian "move convulsively," with cognates in the Scandinavian languages and North Frisian spraweli, probably ultimately from PIE root *sper- "to strew" (see sprout). Meaning "to spread or stretch in a careless manner" is attested from 1540s; of things, from 1745. Related: Sprawled; sprawling.
sprawl (n.): 1719, from sprawl (v.); meaning "straggling expansion of built-up districts into surrounding countryside" is from 1955.
spray (v.): "sprinkle liquid in drops," 1520s, from Middle Dutch sprayen, from Proto-Germanic *spræwjanan (cf. German sprühen "to sparkle, drizzle," Spreu "chaff," literally "that which flies about"), from PIE root *sper- "to sow, scatter" (see sprout). The noun is attested from 1620s. Spray-painting is from 1902; spray-paint (v.) is from 1928.
spray (n.): "small branch," c.1300, possibly related to Old English spræc "shoot, twig" (see sprig).
spread (v.): c.1200, "to stretch out, to send in various directions," probably from Old English -sprædan (especially in tosprædan "to spread out," and gesprædung "spreading"), from Proto-Germanic *spraidijanan (cf. Danish sprede, Old Swedish spreda, Middle Dutch spreiden, Old High German and German spreiten "to spread"), probably from PIE *sper- "to strew" (see sprout). Reflexive sense of "to extend, expand" is attested from mid-14c.
spread (n.): 1690s, "extent or expanse of something," from spread (v.). Meaning "copious meal" dates from 1822; sense of "food for spreading" (butter, jam, etc.) is from 1812. Sense of "bed cover" is recorded from 1848, originally American English. Meaning "degree of variation" is attested from 1929. Meaning "ranch for raising cattle" is attested from 1927.
spread-eagle: literally "splayed eagle," 1570, a heraldic term; the figure is that of the seal of the United States (hence spreadeagleism "extravagant laudation of the U.S.," 1858). Meaning "person secured with arms and legs stretched out" (originally to be flogged) is attested from 1785.
spreadsheet (n.): 1982, from spread + sheet (n.).
spree (n.): frolic, drinking bout," 1804, slang, perhaps an alteration of French esprit "lively wit" (see esprit). Irish spre seems to be a loan-word from Old Norse sprakr.
sprig (n.): c.1400, "shoot, twig or spray of a plant, shrub," probably from Old English spræc "shoot, twig," of obscure origin.