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"attitude" in seven languages

Meaningattitude

Spanish

actitud

/aktiˈtud/

fem.borrowed · Italian attitudine, respelled after acto

French

attitude

/atityd/

fem.borrowed · Italian attitudine

Italian

atteggiamento

/atteddʒaˈmento/

masc.other source · Italian atteggiare 'to strike a pose'

Italian attitudine now means 'aptitude, flair' — a false friend.

Portuguese

atitude

/atʃiˈtudʒi/

fem.borrowed · Italian attitudine, via French attitude

Romanian

atitudine

/atiˈtudine/

fem.borrowed · Italian attitudine and French attitude

Catalan

actitud

/əktiˈtut/

fem.borrowed · Italian attitudine, respelled after acte (as Spanish actitud)

English

attitude

/ˈætətud/

from Latin/French · French attitude, from Italian attitudine

English → ItalianattitudeatteggiamentoNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: aptitude, apt, adapt.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

APTITŪDINEM‘fitness’

All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.

The story

An art word: Italian painters spoke of a figure's attitudine, its posture. French and Spanish took it over, but Italian itself now says atteggiamento.

English relatives: aptitude, apt, adapt

Learn it

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In a sentence

  • esTiene una actitud positiva.
  • frIl a une attitude positive.
  • itHa un atteggiamento positivo.
  • ptEle tem uma atitude positiva.
  • roAre o atitudine pozitivă.
  • caTé una actitud positiva.
  • enHe has a positive attitude.

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