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"cough" in seven languages

Meaningcough

Spanish

tos

/tos/

fem.inherited

French

toux

/tu/

fem.inherited

Italian

tosse

/ˈtosse/

fem.inherited

Portuguese

tosse

/ˈtɔsi/

fem.inherited

Romanian

tuse

/ˈtuse/

fem.inherited

Catalan

tos

/tos/

fem.inherited

English

cough

/kɔf/

native English · Old English *cohhian

English → ItaliancoughtosseNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: pertussis.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

TUSSIM (nom. TUSSIS)‘cough’

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

The story

Latin's feminine TUSSIS stayed feminine in all three. Short u became o in Spanish and Italian, ou in French, which also stopped saying the final consonant.

English relatives: pertussis

Learn it

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In a sentence

  • esNo se me quita esta tos.
  • frCette toux ne passe pas.
  • itQuesta tosse non passa.
  • ptEssa tosse não passa.
  • roTusea asta nu trece.
  • caAquesta tos no em passa.
  • enThis cough won't go away.

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