"crazy, mad" in seven languages
Meaningcrazy, mad
Spanish
/ˈloko/
other source · of uncertain origin (an Arabic source has been proposed; disputed)
French
/fu/
inherited
fem.: folle
Fol before a vowel: un fol espoir.
Italian
/ˈpattso/
other source · of uncertain origin
Also matto; folle, the FOLLEM word, means 'mad, reckless'.
Portuguese
/ˈloku/
other source · of uncertain origin (an Arabic source has been proposed; disputed)
Romanian
/neˈbun/
other source · ne- 'not' + bun 'good' (Latin BONUM)
Catalan
/bɔtʃ/
other source · of uncertain origin
fem.: boja
English
/ˈkɹeɪzi/
native English · craze 'to crack', probably from Old Norse
The Latin ancestor
FOLLEM (nom. FOLLIS)‘bellows, a windbag’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Latin called an airhead a 'bellows'; the l of fol vocalized before the plural s (fols → fous), giving fou. English fool is the same French word.
English relatives: fool, folly (via French)
Sound laws at work
Learn it
In a sentence
- es¡Estás loco!
- frTu es fou !
- itSei pazzo!
- ptVocê está louco!
- roEști nebun!
- caEstàs boig!
- enYou're crazy!