Vulgar Latin vocabulary

This article lists some vocabulary of Vulgar Latin.

Historical overview

St. Jerome, whose commentaries on the Bible are a source of Vulgar Latin. Painting by Peter Paul Rubens.

Like all languages, Latin possessed numerous synonyms that were associated with different speech registers. Some of these words were in the everyday language from the time of Old Latin, while others were borrowed late into Latin from other languages: Germanic, Gaulish, the Paleo-Balkan languages preceding Eastern Romance etc. Certain words customarily used in Classical Latin were not used in Vulgar Latin, such as equus, "horse". Instead, Vulgar Latin typically featured caballus "nag" (but note Romanian iapă, Sardinian èbba, Spanish yegua, Catalan euga and Portuguese égua all meaning "mare" and deriving from Classical equa).

The differences applied even to the basic grammatical particles; many classical have no reflex in Romance, such as an, at, autem, dōnec, enim, ergō, etiam, haud, igitur, ita, nam, postquam, quidem, quīn, quod, quoque, sed, utrum and vel.[1] Verbs with prefixed prepositions frequently displaced simple forms. The number of words formed by such suffixes as -bilis, -ārius, -itāre and -icāre grew apace.

Some Romance languages preserve Latin words that were lost in most others. For example, Italian ogni ("each/every") and Sardinian "ondzi" preserves Latin omnes. Other languages use exclusively cognates of tōtus (originally "entire") for the same meaning; tudo/todo in Portuguese, todo in Spanish, tot in Catalan, tout in French and tot in Romanian. The plural tutti in Italian means "all", and the singular tutto still means "entire".

Sometimes a Classical Latin word appears in a Romance language alongside the equivalent Vulgar Latin word: classical caput, "head", and vulgar testa (originally "pot") in Italian, French and Catalan. In Romanian cap means 'head' in the anatomical sense, but țeastă means skull or carapace,[2] while țest means "pot" or "lid".[3] Some southern Italian dialects preserve capo as the normal word for "head". Spanish and Portuguese have cabeza/cabeça, derived from *capetia, a modified form of caput, but in Portuguese testa is the word for "forehead".

Frequently, words borrowed directly from literary Latin at some later date, rather than evolved within Vulgar Latin, are found side by side with the evolved form. The (lack of) expected phonetic developments is a clue that one word has been borrowed. For example, Vulgar Latin fungus, "fungus, mushroom", which became Italian fungo, Catalan fong, and Portuguese fungo, became hongo in Spanish, showing the f > h shift that was common in early Spanish (cf. fīlius > Spanish hijo, "son", facere > Spanish hacer, "to do"). But Spanish also had fungo, which by its lack of the expected sound shift shows that it was borrowed directly from Latin.[1]

Vulgar Latin contained a large number of words of foreign origin not present in literary texts. Many works on medicine were written and distributed in Greek, and words were often borrowed from these sources. For example, gamba ( 'knee joint' ), originally a veterinary term only, replaced the classical Latin word for leg (crus) in most Romance languages. (cf. Fr. jambe, It. gamba). Cooking terms were also often borrowed from Greek sources, a calque based on a Greek term was ficatum (iecur) (goose's liver fattened with figs, see foie gras for more information), with the participle ficatum becoming the common word for liver in Vulgar Latin (cf. Sp. hígado, Fr. foie, It. fegato, Pt fígado, Romanian ficat). Important religious terms were also drawn from religious texts written in Greek, such as episcopus (bishop), presbyter (priest), martyr etc. Words borrowed from Gaulish include caballus (horse) and carrus (chariot).

Selected list of Classical Latin and Vulgar Latin words

English meaning Latin form Ancient instances Modern Romance inherited forms
"all" omnis (the whole number, the entire) Both Italian/Friulian ogni, Sardinian (d)onzi
tōtus (the whole, not the part) Both French tout, Romansh tut, Friulian dut, Italian tutto, Sardinian tottu, Occitan/Catalan/Romanian tot, Aromanian tut, Spanish todo, Portuguese tudo/todo
"altar" āra Classical
altārium (diminutive) Vulgar, St. Jerome Italian altare, French autel, Portuguese/Galician/Spanish/Romanian altar, but Galician/Portuguese outeiro 'hill, high place'.
"ask" rogāre (beg, demand) Both Italian rogare, Old French rover, Occitan/Catalan/Spanish/Portuguese rogar, Romanian ruga
interrogāre (interrogate) Both Italian interrogare, Old French enterver, Occitan antervar, Asturian entrugar, Romanian întreba, Portuguese interrogar
quaerere (seek) Both Italian chiedere, Occitan querre, Romanian cere, but French quérir "to fetch" and Spanish/Portuguese querer "to want"
dēmandāre (put in the charge of) Both French demander, Italian domandare, Friulian domandâ, Catalan demanar, Spanish/Portuguese demandar, Aromanian dimãndu, dimãndare, (Romanian dimânda probably a later creation)
inquirere>
inquaerere
Classical>
Vulgar
Old French/Occitan enquerre, French enquérir (enquête), Portuguese inquirir
"back"
(anatomy)
tergum   Italian terga, Portuguese tergo
dossum (dorsum) - French/Occitan/Catalan/Romanian dos, Romansh dies, Friulian duès, Italian dosso or dorso, Portuguese/Spanish dorso, in Classical Latin normally "the horizontal back of an animal"
spathae - Italian spada, Spanish espada, Romanian spate
"beak" rōstrum   Italian rostro, Spanish rostro, Catalan/Portuguese rosto "face", Romanian rost "mouth" (archaic), now with the more abstract sense of "scope, purpose"
beccus (Gaulish) Reichenau glosses Italian becco, French bec, Catalan bec, Spanish pico, Portuguese bico
"beautiful" pulcher   Portuguese/Spanish pulcro, Italian pulcro
fōrmōsus   Spanish hermoso, Galician fermoso, Italian/Portuguese formoso, Calabrian fumusu, Occitan formos, Romanian frumos "shapely; having a nice figure".
bellus (diminutive of bonus)   Italian/Spanish bello, Portuguese belo, French beau.
"begin" conārī Friulian čugnâsi "to begin to move, stir"
incipere Romanian începe, Romansh entschaiver
*cominitiāre   Portuguese começar, Italian cominciare, French commencer, Romansh cumanzer, Friulian comenčâ, Spanish comenzar, from cum + initiāre "initiate"
"big" magnus   Sicilian magnu, Sardinian mannu, Portuguese/Spanish tamanho/tamaño, Romanian mare
grandis   French grand, Italian/Spanish/Portuguese grande, Catalan gran
"bird" avis   Spanish/Portuguese ave, Catalan au, Pugliese avs
avicellus (diminutive)   Italian uccello, French oiseau, Romansh utschè, Friulian ucel, Catalan aucel, Portuguese auzelo
passer   Spanish pájaro, Portuguese pássaro, Romanian pasăre, originally "sparrow" (so Italian passero, French passereaux, Friulian pàssare, Romansh pasler, Occitan paser, Catalan passara)
"blond/blonde" *blundus/blunda (Germanic *blundaz) O.Fr. blont, from M.L. adj. blundus, from Frank. *blund.  French blond/e, Italian biondo/bionda, Portuguese blondícomo/a, flavícomo/a (Romanian blond/blondă is a modern loan)
laurus/laura (laurel color, bay leaf hair person)   Galician louro, loura, Portuguese louro/loiro, loura/loira, laurícomo/laurícoma, Romanian laur (as noun, meaning "laurel" or "jimsonweed")
"blow" flāre   -
sufflāre   French souffler, Romansh suflar, Italian soffiare, Romanian sufla, Aromanian suflu, suflare, Occitan soflar, Spanish soplar, Portuguese soprar
"book" librum   Spanish libro, Italian "libro", French livre, Aromanian libru ("Chronicle"), Sardinian "libru"
charta (original "papyrus")   Italian "carta", Romanian carte, Aromanian carti
cōdex   Romansch:Sur./Grisch. cudesch, Romansch:Friul.Vall. codesch
"boy" puer   -
ninnus (hypocoristic)   Spanish niño, Portuguese nini, nenê, nenén, ninar (to rock and to lull to sleep), Catalan nen, Galician neno, Italian nino, ninnolo, ninna ninnàre (to rock and to lull to sleep)
minimus   Italian mimmo, Portuguese menino, mimo, mimoso, Spanish mimo, menino-a (chaperone, squire, esquire, page, a court maid of honour as in Velázquez's painting, from Pt.: small child)
*wrakkio (Frankish)   Old French gars, garçun, French garçon (> Portuguese garoto (boy), garçom (waiter), Italian garzone)
bambo/bimbo (hypocoristic) (Greek bambainos/bambalos)   Italian bambino
rapace   Portuguese/Spanish/Galician rapaz "lad"
musteus   Portuguese moço "lad, young man", Italian mozzo, Asturian mozu, Catalan mosso, Spanish/Galician mozo
mancipius   Portuguese/Spanish mancebo "lad, young man"
iuvene   French jeune homme, Italian giovane, Portuguese jovem, Galician xove, Spanish joven, Catalan jóve, Romanian/Megleno-Romanian june, Istro-Romanian jure, Aromanian gione, (all meaning a youth)
"breathe" spīrāre   Portuguese/Spanish espirar "to breathe; to blow", Italian/Aromanian spirare, espirare, inspirare
respīrāre   French respirer (later borrowing/learned term), Italian respirare, Romanian respira (later borrowing based on French), Spanish/Portuguese/Catalan respirar, frequentative form of spirāre
"brown" furvus   -
*brūnus (Germanic) Reichenau glosses French brun, Italian/Spanish/Portuguese bruno (Romanian brun is a modern loan)
cyma (American Spanish cimarrón, from cima, French marron in sense of "escaped, become wild again" borrowed from Spanish)   French marron "chesnut, brown" (probably from Italian), Italian marrone (of uncertain origin), Portuguese marrom (from French), Spanish marrón (borrowed from French), (Romanian maro is a modern loan); Spanish/Portuguese/Italian cima, French cime, Romanian ciumă, Dalmatian čama from Latin cyma
castaneus (Lat. castanea=chestnut, Greek kastanea)   Spanish castaño, Italian castano, Portuguese castanho, French châtain, Romanian castaniu (possibly borrowed, but probably inherited in Aromanian cãstãnju)
maurus (Late Latin maurinus)   Galician mouro, Spanish/Portuguese/Ladino moreno, also Portuguese mauro, maurino and Spanish morocho
pardus   Portuguese/Spanish pardo
"buy" emere   -
comparāre   Old French comparer, Romansh cumprar, Italian comp(e)rare, Spanish/Portuguese comprar, Romanian cumpăra, Aromanian acumpãr
*accaptāre   French acheter, Piedmontese caté, Italian accattare ("beg", older "buy"), Portuguese/Spanish acatar "to obey", "respect", "heed"/ "to cull", "pick out", "search"/ "to acquire", "obtain")
"cat" fēlēs   -
*cattus   Italian gatto, Spanish/Portuguese gato, French chat, Romanian cătușă "handcuff" from a diminutive form Aromanian "cãtushã" "cat"
"cauldron" lebēs   -
*calidāria Reichenau glosses French chaudière, Italian caldaio, Romanian căldare, Spanish caldera, Portuguese caldeira, from calidus "warm"
"change" mūtāre   French muer "to molt", Italian mutare, Spanish/Portuguese mudar, mutar, Romanian muta
*cambiāre (Gaulish[4])   Fr changer, It cambiare, Sp cambiar, Pt cambiar ("barter", "exchange money") not in classical Latin, probably originally "to exchange", (French échanger, Italian scambiare, and Romanian schimba from excambiāre)
"cheese" caseus   Italian cacio, Sardinian casu, Spanish queso, Portuguese queijo, Galician queixo, Romanian/Megleno-Romanian caș, Aromanian cashu", Istro-Romanian cǫș, also borrowed into Germanic: English cheese, German Käse
fōrmāticum Reichenau glosses French fromage, Italian formaggio, Catalan formatge, post-classical, from fōrmāre, "to form"
"child" līberī   -
īnfāns   French enfant, Italian fante "infantryman", Spanish/Portuguese infante, "child", "infant prince" or "infantryman"
"city" urbs   Romanian/Spanish/Portuguese urbe (however these may all be re-introductions), Italian urbe
oppidum   -
cīvitās   French cité, Italian città, Spanish ciudad, Portuguese cidade, Romanian cetate
"count" numerāre   French nombrer, Italian noverare, (e)numerare, Portuguese/Spanish (e)numerar, Romanian număra
computāre   French compter, Italian contare, computare, Spanish/Portuguese contar, computar
"country" regiō   Old French royon, Italian rione "neighbourhood" (French région, Italian regione, Portuguese região, Galician rexión, Spanish región Romanian regiune are learned forms)
pāgus   Portuguese/Spanish pago
pāgēnsis Gregory of Tours Italian paese, French pays, hence Spanish/Portuguese/Galician país, Catalan pahis
"day" diēs   Italian (archaic), Sardinain dìe (f.), Romansh di, gi, Spanish/Galician día, Portuguese dia, Romanian zi
diurnum   French jour, Italian giorno, Catalan/Occitan jorn, Venetian zorno, Sicilian jornu
"destroy" dēlēre   Portuguese/Galician delir
dēstruere   French détruire, Italian distruggere, Spanish/Portuguese destruir, Romanian distruge (borrowed from Italian)
"door" forīs (adverb forās)   Galician fóra and Portuguese fora "outside", Spanish fuera "outside", Romanian afară "outside", Italian fuori "outside", French hors
ostium   Old French huis, Occitan ueissa, Romansh esch, üsch, Italian uscio, Old Spanish uzo, Romanian ușă
iānua   Sardinian zanna, gianna, Northern Calabrian yanuwẹ; Portuguese janela and Galician xanela "window/opening", from *iānuella
porta   French porte, Italian/Portuguese/Galician/Catalan porta, Spanish puerta, Romanian poartă, originally "gate"
"ear" auris   -
auricula (diminutive), oricla (Vulgar Latin)   French oreille, Italian orecchio, Spanish oreja, Portuguese orelha, Catalan/Galician orella, Romanian ureche, Aromanian ureaclje, Occitan aurelha, Romansch ureglia, Friulian orele
"eat" edere   -
comedere   Spanish/Portuguese/Galician comer
mandūcāre   French manger, Italian manducare, Logudorese Sardinian man(d)icare, Romanian mânca, Dalmatian mančur (Italian mangiare and Portuguese manjar are from the French)
"enemy" hostis   Spanish hueste, Portuguese/Galician hoste, Romanian/Aromanian oaste, Istro-Romanian oste, Megleno-Romanian ǫsti, "army", Italian oste, ostile
inimīcus   French ennemi, Italian nemico, Spanish enemigo, Portuguese/Galician inimigo, Romanian inamic (later borrowing); in Classical Latin, inimīcus is "a personal enemy"
"evening" vesper   French vêpre, Italian vespro, Spanish vísperas, Portuguese vésper, vésperas, normally in an ecclesiastical meaning
sēra   French soir, Italian sera, Romanian seară, Galician serán, Portuguese serão, sereno, Spanish sereno
tardis   Sp/Pt/Gl tarde "afternoon", Italian tardi "late"
"fat" pinguis   Italian pingue "fertile"
crassus > *grassus "thick" Reichenau glosses French/Romanian gras, Italian grasso, Sardinian rassu, Spanish graso, Portuguese crasso/graxo, with g- from grossus
grossus "fat"   French/Romanian gros, Italian/Portuguese grosso, Galician groso, Spanish grueso, Dalmatian gruos
"feather" penna   French penne, Italian penna, Sardinian pinna, Occitan/Portuguese pena, Romanian pană
plūma   French plume, Italian piuma, Spanish/Portuguese pluma (a reintroduction), Old Galician chumazo 'mattress', Catalan ploma
"field" ager   Portuguese/Spanish agro, Romanian/Aromanian agru
campus Reichenau glosses French/Romansh champ, Italian/Spanish/Portuguese campo, Romanian câmp
"fight" pugna   Portuguese/Spanish pugna (a reintroduction), Old Galician puña 'effort'
*lūcta   French lutte, Italian lotta, Portuguese luta, Galician loita, Spanish lucha, Romanian luptă, originally "wrestling match", post-classical, classical equivalents were lūctāmen and lūctātiō, all from lūctārī, "to fight"
"find" invenīre   Italian rinvenire
*incontrāre   Spanish/Catalan/Portuguese encontrar, originally "meet" (French encontrer, Italian incontrare)
turbāre   French trouver, Italian trovare, originally "disturb" (Italian turbare, Romanian turba) > "track down" (Spanish turbar, Portuguese torvar/turbar/trovar "impede")
"fight" pugnāre   Portuguese/Spanish pugnar, Spanish/Galician puñar, Italian pugnare
luctārī   Italian lottare, Spanish luchar, Portuguese lutar, Galician loitar, Romanian lupta, Aromanian alumtu
"fingernail" unguis   -
ungula (diminutive) Reichenau glosses French ongle, Italian unghia, Spanish uña, Portuguese unha, Galician uña and unlla, Catalan ungla, Romanian unghie, Aromanian unglje, Dalmatian jongla, Occitan onha, Romansh ungla
"fire" ignis   -
focus   French feu, Italian fuoco, Spanish fuego, Portuguese/Galician fogo, Romanian/Aromanian/Catalan foc, Romansh fieu, fiug
"food" cibus   Italian dial. cevo and similar forms (Italian cibo is a learned form), Portuguese ceva and cibo, Spanish cebo
alimenta   French alimentation, Italian/Spanish/Portuguese alimento, Catalan aliment
"force" vīs   -
*fortia Reichenau glosses French force, Italian/Galician forza, Spanish fuerza, Portuguese força, from fortis, "strong", (Romanian forță neologism based on French)
"from" ab   -
  French/Spanish/Portuguese/Galician/Romanian de, Italian da and di ("of"), Sardinian dae
"garden" hortus   Italian orto, Spanish huerto, Portuguese horto/a
*gardīnus (Germanic *gardaz)   French jardin, Italian giardino, Spanish jardín, Portuguese jardim, (Romanian grădină probably of Slavic origin)
"girl" puella   Portuguese puela (learned form)
fīlia   French fille, also and originally "daughter" (the regular meaning in other Romance languages: It. figlia, Pt. filha, Gl. filla, Ro. fie, fiică, Arm. hilje, Oc. filha, Cat. filla, Scn. figghia, Fur. fie, Rm. figlia, Sp. hija)
*ninna (hypocoristic)   Spanish niña, Catalan noy(a), Galician 'nena', Portuguese menina, nini, nenén
"head" caput   French chef "chief", Spanish/Portuguese/Galician cabo "end", Catalan/Romanian cap, Italian capo "leader"
*capetium   Spanish/Galician cabeza "head", Portuguese cabeça "head", French chevet "headboard"
testa   French tête, Italian testa, Spanish/Portuguese/Galician testa "forehead", Romanian țeastă "skull", originally "pot"
"helmet" galea   -
cofea (Germanic)[5]   Romanian coif (cf. English coif<Old French coife<L.Latin cofea<Old High German kuphia)
*helmus (Germanic *helmaz) Reichenau glosses French heaume, Italian/Portuguese elmo, Catalan elm, Spanish yelmo
"help" iuvāre   - Italian giovare
adiūtāre   French aider, Italian aiutare, Spanish ayudar, Portuguese/Catalan ajudar, Galician axudar, Romanian ajuta, frequentative of iuvāre with prefix ad
"horse" equa (Fem.)   Old French iève, Occitan ego, Portuguese égua, Galician egua, Catalan euga, Spanish yegua, Sardinian ebba, Romanian iapă, Aromanian iapã, all meaning "mare"
caballus (Celtic)   French cheval, Romansh chaval, Italian cavallo, Sardinian cadd(h)u, Portuguese 'cavalo', Galician 'cabalo', Spanish caballo, Romanian/Aromanian cal
"house" domus   Italian duomo "cathedral", Sardinian domo "home"
casa   French chez "at the house of", Italian/Spanish/Portuguese/Catalan casa, Romanian casă, Aromanian casã; in Classical Latin, casa is "a humble dwelling"
mānsiō   French maison, Portuguese mansão, Italian mansione "work"; in Classical Latin "a stop-over on a trip", Spanish mansión (a learned form) and mesón.
"huge" ingēns   Portuguese/Spanish ingente "enormous" (learned form/borrowing), Italian ingente "numerous"
ēnormis   French énorme (learned form/borrowing), Italian/Spanish/Portuguese enorme, Romanian enorm (borrowing from French)
"hunt" vēnārī   Old French vener "to hunt deer", Catalan venar, Romanian vâna, Aromanian avin, avinare, Portuguese veadar "to hunt deer"
*captiāre   French chasser, Italian cacciare, Spanish/Galician cazar, Occitan/Portuguese caçar; post-classical, frequentative of capere, "to catch"
"kill" necāre   French noyer, Occitan/Romansh negar, Friulian inneâsi, Italian annegare, Spanish/Catalan/Portuguese anegar, Romanian îneca "drown", Aromanian nec, necare
interficere   -
mactare   French mater, Portuguese/Spanish matar, originally "to sacrifice, immolate", Italian "ammazzare"
occīdere Reichenau glosses Old French occir, Italian uccidere, Romanian ucide, Aromanian tsid, tsidere
trux cidare   Italian trucidare, French trucider, Portuguese/Spanish trucidar (both meaning slay)
tūtārī   French tuer, originally "protect oneself, tutor"
"kiss" ōsculārī   Portuguese/Galician oscular (learned form), Spanish ósculo
bāsiāre Catullus, Petronius French baiser, Italian baciare, Spanish/Catalan besar, Portuguese beijar, Galician beixar, Aromanian baș/bash
"kitchen" culīna   -
coquīna Apuleius French cuisine, Italian cucina, Spanish cocina, Portuguese cozinha, Galician cociña
"know" scīre   Romanian ști, Aromanian shtiu, Sardinian iskire
sapere   French savoir, Italian sapere, Spanish/Portuguese/Catalan/Galician saber
"leg" crūs   -
*camba (Greek) Vegetius (4th cent.) French jambe, Italian gamba, Catalan/Portuguese camba, Romanian gambă (possibly borrowed), also Pt "câimbra, cambito, cambalhota, gâmbia, gambeta"
perna   Portuguese/Galician perna, pernil, Spanish pierna
"little" ciccum "trifle" (< Greek kikkos)   French chiche, Italian cece, Bolognese zeis, Catalan xic "small", Spanish chico "boy"
"male" mās   - Romanian mare ("big"), possibly from the accusative form mārem
māsculus (diminutive) Reichenau glosses French mâle, Italian maschio, Portuguese/Galician (> Spanish) macho, Dialectal Romanian mascur (male pig)
"man" vir   -
homō, hominem   French homme, Italian uomo, Sardinian òmine, Portuguese homem, Galician home, Spanish hombre, Catalan ome, Romanian om, in Classical Latin "a human being" (in opposition to gods and beasts)
"market" forum   Old French fuer "law", Spanish fuero "id.", Portuguese foro/fórum "court", Italian foro, "hole"
mercatum Reichenau glosses French marché, Italian mercato, Spanish/Portuguese/Galician mercado
"mob" turba   Italian/Spanish/Portuguese/Catalan turba
*fulcus (Germanic *fulkaN) Reichenau glosses French foule, Italian folla
"money" pecūnia   Spanish/Italian pecunia, Portuguese pecúnia (learned), French pécune , Aromanian piculju/picunlju
dēnārius   Italian denaro, Sardinian (d)inare, French denier, Spanish dinero, Portuguese dinheiro, Galician diñeiro, Catalan diner, originally a Roman coin
argentum   French argent, both "money" and "silver" (both meanings in Classical Latin), Italian argento, "silver", Romanian argint, Spanish and Portuguese plata/prata from Provençal "silver"
"mouth" ōs   -
bucca   French bouche, Italian bocca, Sardinian (b)ucca, Romanian/Megleno-Romanian bucă "buttcheek", Aromanian bucã, Portuguese/Galician/Spanish/Catalan boca, originally "cheek"
"narrow" angustus   Italian/Portuguese angusto, Spanish angosto, Romanian îngust, Macedo-Romanian ngustu, Istro-Romanian ăngust
strictus   French étroit, Italian stretto, Portuguese estreito, estrito, Spanish estrecho, Romanian strâmt, Aromanian strãmtu
"never" numquam   Old French nonques, Spanish/Portuguese/Galician nunca
iam magis   French/Portuguese jamais, Galician xamais, Italian giammai, Spanish jamás, originally "ever"
"obey" pārēre   -
oboedīre   French obéir, Italian obbedire, Spanish/Portuguese obedecer
"old" vetus   Old French viez, Italian vieto, "vestusto", Portuguese/Spanish vetusto (vetustus); Galician vedraño 'old men', Romanian bătrân 'old man' (to veteranus)
vetulus (diminutive) veclus (vulgar transformation)   French vieux, Italian vecchio, Spanish viejo, Catalan vell, Portuguese velho, Galician vello, Romanian vechi, Aromanian veclju; diminutive of vetus
"papyrus > paper" charta   Italian carta, Romanian carte (book), Spanish/Portuguese carta "letter/chart"
papȳrus   French papier, Sardinian pabilu (logud.) and paperi (camp.), Spanish/Portuguese papel, Catalan paper, Italian "papiro"
"pay" (ex)pendere   -
dispendere   Italian spendere (Portuguese/Spanish despender, Catalan despendre "use")
pācāre   French payer, Italian pagare, Spanish/Catalan/Portuguese/Galician pagar, Romanian împăca "make peace with"; originally "bring under control" in Latin
"play" lūdere   -
iocārī   French jouer, Italian giocare, Spanish jugar, Portuguese jogar, Galician xogar, Romanian juca, Aromanian gioc, giucare
"play" lūdus   Portuguese ludo
iocus   French jeu, Italian gioco, Spanish juego, Portuguese jogo, Galician xogo, Romanian/Istro-Romanian/Megleno-Romanian joc, Aromanian gioc
"quail" coturnīx   Spanish/Portuguese codorniz, Catalan codorniu, Old Italian codornice, Romanian potârniche "partridge"
*coācula (Germanic, from Frankish *kwakla) Reichenau glosses French caille, Italian quaglia
"quick" celer   Portuguese célere; Spanish celeridad (swiftness, a learned form), Italian "celere"
rapidus   Romanian repede Istro-Romanian răpede; French rapide, Italian rapido, Spanish/Portuguese/Galician rápido are learned forms that have replaced the regular outcomes Old French rade, Italian ratto, Spanish raudo
velox   Spanish/Portuguese/Galician veloz (learned forms); Italian veloce
"recognise" agnōscere   -
recognōscere   French reconnaître, Italian riconoscere, Portuguese reconhecer, GAlician recoñecer, Spanish reconocer, Romanian recunoaște (based partly on French)
"red" rubeus / rubidus   French rouge, Portuguese rúbeo, ruivo (red head, red-haired), rúbido, rubente, Galician rubio, roibo, Spanish rúbeo, rubio (blond, fair hair), rubicundo, Catalan roig, Italian rubino
ruber   Portuguese/Galician/Spanish rubro
rufus   Portuguese/Galician/Spanish rufo (learned forms, English rufous)
russeus / russus   French roux (red head, red-haired), Italian rosso, Portuguese rússeo, roxo (purple), Galician roxo, Spanish rojo, Romanian roșu, Megleno-Romanian roș, Istro-Romanian roiș, Macedo-Romanian aroș/arosh, Catalan rosso (blond)
vermiculus (Late Latin)   Catalan vermell, Portuguese vermelho, Galician vermello, Old French vermeillon (English vermillion/vermeil), Spanish bermejo, Italian "vermiglio"
"right a." (opp. "left") dexter   Italian/Portuguese destro, Spanish diestro, Catalan destre, Romanian zestre "dowry"
dirēctus   French droit, Italian diritto, Sardinian dereta, Spanish derecho and derecha, Portuguese direito, Romanian drept, Macedo-Romanian dreptu, Istro-Romanian dirept
"right n." iūs   Sicilian iussu
dirēctus   French droit, Italian diritto, Spanish derecho, Portuguese direito, Romanian drept, Macedo-Romanian dreptu, Istro-Romanian dirept
"river" flūmen   Italian fiume, Sicilian hiumi, Sardinian flumene, Portuguese flume/flúmen (learned)
fluvius   Portuguese flúvio (learned), French fleuve (merged with Frank. *flōda "river to the sea"), Romanian fluviu (learned)
rīvus   Old French ri(f), Old Italian rigo, Sardinian (ar)riu, Spanish/Galician río Portuguese rio, Catalan riu, Romanian râu, Aromanian arãu
"rock" saxum   Italian sasso, Portuguese saxo, Galician seixo
*rocca (perhaps Germanic[6])   French roche, Italian roccia, Portuguese rocha, Spanish rocca, post-classical
"rope" fūnis   Italian fune, Romanian funie, Portuguese/Spanish funículo (learned)
chorda   French corde, Italian/Portuguese/Catalan corda, Spanish cuerda, Romanian coardă
"sand" arena   Sardinian rena (log.) and arena (camp.), Spanish arena, Portuguese areia, Galician area, Dialectal Romanian arină, Sicilian rina, Italian rena
sabulo   French sable, Italian sabbia, Portuguese saibro, Romanian sabie, Spanish sabre
"shirt" tunica   Italian tonaca, Spanish tonga "coat", Portuguese túnica
camisia (Gaulish < Germanic) Jerome Vegliot kamaisa/camaisa, Sardinian camisa, Romanian cămașă, French chemise, chainse "canvas", Aromanian cãmeashã, Spanish/Portuguese/Catalan camisa, Italian camicia
"short" brevis   French bref, Italian/Spanish/Portuguese breve
curtus   Portuguese curto, French court, Italian/Spanish corto, Romanian scurt and Aromanian shcurtu (< excurtus)
"show" ostendere   Portuguese/Spanish ostentar, Italian ostentare
mōnstrāre   French montrer (with Latin n for earlier mostrer), Italian mostrare, Spanish/Portuguese/Galician mostrar, Galician amosar (*admōnstrāre), Romanian mustra "chide"
"sick" aeger   Italian egro
dolente   Portuguese doente, Spanish doliente, Italian dolente
infirmus   Spanish/Portuguese enfermo, Italian infermo
male habitus Nepos, Aulus Gellius French malade, Italian malato, Occitan malaut, Catalan malalt, Galician malato, malado, Portuguese maladia/mal hábito, originally "in a bad condition", Sardinian malaidu
"sing" canere   -
cantāre (frequentative)   French chanter, Romansh chantar, Italian/Sardinian cantare, Portuguese/Spanish/Catalan cantar, Romanian cânta, Aromanian cãntu, cãntare
"skin" cutis   Portuguese cútis; Spanish cutis, Italian cute
pellis   French peau, Italian pelle, Spanish piel, Portuguese pele, Sardinian pedd(h)e, Galician pel, Catalan pell, Romanian piele; in Classical Latin normally "a hide"
"speak" loquī   -
fābulārī   Spanish hablar, Portuguese falar, but Italian favellare "to tell a tale", Occitan faular "id.", Old French fabler "id.", Dalmatian faular, Sardinian faeddare
*parabolāre   French parler, Occitan/Catalan parlar, Italian parlare
"spear" fustis   Romanian fuște, Italian fusto "tree trunk", Sardinian fuste (stick), French fût "cask"
hasta   Portuguese hasta/e, Spanish asta (shaft of a weapon), Italian asta, French hast "pole-arm"
lancea   French lance, Italian lancia, Spanish/Galician lanza, Portuguese lança, Catalan llança
"spring" vēr   Romanian vară, Spanish verano, Portuguese verão, Galician verán, Friulian vierte.
prīma vēra   Italian/Spanish/Portuguese/Catalan primavera, Occitan primver, Romansh primavera, prümavaira, Romanian primăvară, Aromanian primuvearã; originally "first spring" in Latin
prīmum tempus   French printemps, literally "first time"
"stone" lapis   Italian lapide, Portuguese lápide, Spanish lápida (learned forms)
petra (Greek)   French pierre, Italian pietra, Sardinian perda, Spanish piedra, Portuguese/Catalan pedra, Romanian piatră, Aromanian chiatrã, Dalmatian pitra
"stonemason" cēmentarius   -
mattiō (Frankish) Reichenau glosses French maçon
petrarius   Portuguese pedreiro, Romanian pietrar
"sword" gladium   French glai "iris", Old Italian ghiado, Portuguese gládio, Spanish gladio (learned forms)
spatha (Greek)   French épée, Italian spada, Spanish/Portuguese/Galician espada, Catalan espasa, Romanian spată
"take" capere   Old French chavoir, Italian capire "understand", Spanish/Catalan/Portuguese caber "contain", Romanian încăpea "comprise, accommodate, fit" (from *incapēre)
prehendere   French prendre, Italian prendere, Catalan pendre, Romanian prinde, Spanish prender
"teach" docēre   Old French duire, Italian/Portuguese/Spanish docente (noun)
*insignāre   French enseigner, Italian insegnare, Romanian însemna, Spanish enseñar, Portuguese/Galician ensinar, probably originally "to engrave", from signāre, "to engrave", with prefix in-
"thigh" femur   Portuguese fêmur (femur—a learned word), Spanish fémur, Italian femore
coxa Reichenau glosses Portuguese, Galician and Old Spanish coxa, French cuisse, Italian coscia, Sardinain coscia or cossa, Catalan cuixa, Romanian coapsă, originally "hip", first attested in Silver Latin
"thing" rēs   French (ne) ... rien "nothing", Old Portuguese rem/nulla res "nothing"
causa Reichenau glosses French chose, Italian/Spanish/Sardinian/Catalan cosa, Portuguese coisa/cousa, causa, originally "cause", Galician cousa, Romanian cauză (borrowed from French, and has another meaning: din această cauză is 'Because of –this-')
"think" cōgitāre   Old French cuidier, Old Italian coitare, Portuguese/Spanish cuidar "to be careful; to suppose", Portuguese cogitar "to think; contemplate", Galician coidar "to think", Romanian cugeta
pensāre   French penser, Italian pensare, Spanish/Portuguese pensar, Romanian păsa "to care (about)", Sardinian pessare
"throw" iacere   French gésir "to rest in peace", Romansch giaschair "to lie down", Italian giacere, Catalan jaure, Spanish yacer, Occitan/Portuguese jazer, Galician xacer "to lie down", Romanian zăcea, Aromanian dzac, dzãtseare
iactāre   French jeter, Occitan getar, Italian gettare, Sardinian ghetare, Spanish echar, Portuguese geitar, Galician xeitar; originally a frequentative
"tomorrow" crās   Sardinian cras, Sicilian crai, Old Spanish cra
māne   Old French main, Occitan man, Old Italian/Old Spanish mane, Romanian mâine, all "in the morning"
"touch" tangere   Italian tangere, Portuguese tanger (touch and play), Spanish tañer "play an instrument", Romanian atinge (<Latin attingere) "to touch" [French atteindre "to reach, be on target", Portuguese/Spanish atingir (attain, get at, hit, reach, achieve, bear on, touch on, upon), Italian attingere (draw, get), from Vulgar Latin *attangere, from Latin attingere : ad-, ad- + tangere, to touch]
*toccāre (Germanic *tukkōn "to knock, offend")   French toucher/toquer, Italian toccare, Sardinian tucare, Spanish/Portuguese tocar (touch and play), probably originally "to knock, strike", Romanian toc (onomatopoeic, indicating a knock), toca (to beat or cut into pieces), toacă (singing wooden board)
"understand" intelligere   Romanian înțelege, Romansh encleger
comprehendere   French/Catalan comprendre, Portuguese compreender, Italian comprendere, Spanish comprender, Romanian cuprinde
capere   Italian capire "understand" (Old French chavoir, Spanish/Catalan/Portuguese/Galician caber "contain")
intendere   Italian/Sardinian intendere, Portuguese/Spanish/Galician entender, French entendre "to hear", orig. "to intend", Romanian întinde "stretch"
"war" bellum   -
*werra (Germanic)   French guerre, Italian/Spanish/Portuguese/Galician guerra (It. pronounced 'gwerra'), Sardinian gherra
"weep" flēre   Friulian vaî
planctus   Portuguese prantear (learned form), Spanish llanto (noun)
plangere   Romanian plânge, Sardinian prànghere or piànghere, French plaindre "to complain", Occitan planher, Catalan planyer, Spanish plañir, Italian piangere, Sardinian plànghiri, prànghiri, Dalmatian plungre; Portuguese planger (learned form)
plōrāre Reichenau glosses French pleurer, Spanish llorar, Portuguese chorar, Catalan/Occitan plorar, Old Italian piorare, Romanian implora
"white" albus   Romansh alv, Friulian alf, Dalmatian jualb, Romanian alb, Portuguese alvo
*blancus (Germanic)   French/Catalan blanc, Italian bianco, Spanish blanco, Portuguese branco
"why" cūr   -
prō quō   French pourquoi, Italian perché, Spanish por qué, Portuguese porque/por que/porquê/por quê, Romanian pentru ce (although de ce is more frequently used)
"wide" lātus   Italian lato, Portuguese/Galician/Spanish lado, Romanian lat
largus   French large, Italian/Portuguese/Galician/Spanish largo, Romanian larg, originally "abundant"
"winter" hiems   -
hibernus Reichenau glosses French hiver, Romansh dial. inviern, Italian/Portuguese inverno, Spanish invierno, Catalan invern, Romanian iarnă, Aromanian iarã; adjective of hiems
"woman" fēmina   French femme, Italian femmina, Neapolitan femmena, Sicilian fímmina, Sardinian fémina, Spanish hembra "female", Portuguese fêmea "female", Galician femia, Romanian famen "eunuch"
mulier   Old French moillier, Italian moglie "wife", Neapolitan mugliera "wife", Occitan molhèr "wife", Catalan moller, Portuguese mulher, Galician muller, Spanish mujer "woman", Sardinian muzere "wife", Romanian muiere
domina   Catalan dona "woman", French dame "lady", Italian donna "woman", Portuguese dona "lady", Romanian doamnă "lady", Spanish doña; originally "female head of a household, mistress"
"word" verbum   Romansh verv (archaic), Romanian vorbă (possibly of Slavic origin alternatively), Portuguese/Spanish verbo
parabola (Greek)   Friulian peraule, Italian parola, Occitan/Catalan paraula, Sardinian para(g)ula, Portuguese palavra, Spanish/Galician palabra, Dalmatian palaura
"work" labōrāre   Romansh lavurer "to work", Friulian lavorâ, Italian lavorare, Occitan laurar "to plow, till", Catalan llaurar, Spanish/Galician labrar, Portuguese lavrar
*tripāliāre from trēs, "three" + pālus, "stake"   Romanian treabă, French travailler, Spanish trabajar, Occitan/Portuguese trabalhar, Galician traballar, Catalan treballar, Sardinian tri- or tra- ballare
lucrāri   Italian logorare "to consume, wear out", Portuguese/Spanish lograr "to obtain", Romanian lucra "to work", also to "plow, till"
"yellow" flāvus   - ; Portuguese/Spanish flavo "fair hair" (learned forms)
fulvus   - ; Portuguese/Galician fulvo "fair hair", Italian fulvo (all learned loans)
galbinus Petronius, Martial French/Occitan jaune, Italian gavinello "kestrel", Romanian galben, originally "greenish-yellow"; Old French jalne > Romansh (Vallader) gelg, Ladin gh(i)el, Friulian ğâl, Italian giallo, Old Italian gialde, Lombardo giald, Spanish jalde, Portuguese jardo
amārellus, from amārus "bitter"   Portuguese amarelo, Spanish amarillo, originally "pale, sallow"
croceus, from crocum "saffron"   Catalan groc, Sardinian grògo
"yes" ita   Romanian da
sīc Reichenau glosses Italian , Spanish/Galician , Portuguese sim, French si (to contradict a negative question), Aromanian shi although it is rarely used and e is more common

Notes

  1. 1 2 Harrington et al. (1997).
  2. From the online Romanian Explanatory Dictionary
  3. From the online Romanian Explanatory Dictionary
  4. "http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=change&searchmode=none". Retrieved 2008-05-22. External link in |title= (help)
  5. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000
  6. G. Rohlfs, Revue de linguistique Romane 28 (1964) 95-102
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