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"crystal" in seven languages

Meaningcrystal

Spanish

cristal

/kɾisˈtal/

masc.learned

In Spain also the everyday word for glass: a window pane, a lens.

French

cristal

/kʁistal/

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plural: cristaux

Italian

cristallo

/kriˈstallo/

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Portuguese

cristal

/kɾisˈtaw/

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Romanian

cristal

/krisˈtal/

neut.learned

Catalan

cristall

/kɾisˈtaʎ/

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English

crystal

/ˈkɹɪstəl/

from Latin/French · Old French cristal, from Latin

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

The Latin ancestor

CRYSTALLUM (Greek krýstallos)‘ice; rock crystal’

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

The story

Greek krýstallos first meant 'ice': rock crystal was taken for ice frozen for good. Spanish has stretched cristal to cover ordinary glass, where French says verre and Italian vetro.

English relatives: crystallize, crystalline

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In a sentence

  • esEl agua estaba clara como el cristal.
  • frL'eau était claire comme du cristal.
  • itL'acqua era limpida come il cristallo.
  • ptA água estava clara como cristal.
  • roApa era limpede precum cristalul.
  • caL'aigua era clara com el cristall.
  • enThe water was as clear as crystal.

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