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"certain, sure" in seven languages

Meaningcertain, sure

Spanish

cierto

/ˈθjeɾto/

inherited

Before a noun it means 'a certain': cierto día.

French

certain

/sɛʁtɛ̃/

inherited

From spoken Latin *CERTĀNUM, CERTUS plus a suffix; before a noun it means 'some': certains jours.

Italian

certo

/ˈtʃɛrto/

inherited

Certo! on its own means 'Of course!'.

Portuguese

certo

/ˈsɛhtu/

inherited

Romanian

cert

/tʃert/

learned

The everyday 'sure' is sigur.

Catalan

cert

/sɛɾt/

inherited

English

certain

/ˈsɝtən/

from Latin/French · Old French certain

English → Italiancertain, surecertoCognateSame source — inherited, learned or borrowed. You can recognize it.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

CERTUM‘settled, sure’

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

The story

The c before e softened three ways (θ, s, tʃ). Spanish breaks the open e into ie even before two consonants; Italian certo leaves it alone.

English relatives: certainty, certify, certificate

Sound laws at work

C before E and IStressed short E breaks into ie

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In a sentence

  • esUna cosa es cierta: llegamos tarde.
  • frUne chose est certaine : nous sommes en retard.
  • itUna cosa è certa: siamo in ritardo.
  • ptUma coisa é certa: estamos atrasados.
  • roUn lucru e cert: am întârziat.
  • caUna cosa és certa: arribem tard.
  • enOne thing is certain: we're late.

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