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"every, each" in seven languages

Meaningevery, each

Spanish

cada

/ˈkada/

inherited

'Every day' is usually todos los días.

French

chaque

/ʃak/

other source · back-formed from chacun ← spoken Latin *CASCŪNUM (QUISQUE ŪNUM blended with CATA ŪNUM)

Italian

ogni

/ˈoɲɲi/

other source · Latin OMNEM 'all, every'

Portuguese

cada

/ˈkadɐ/

inherited

Romanian

fiecare

/ˈfjekare/

other source · fie 'be it' (Latin FĪAT) + care 'which' (Latin QUĀLEM)

Catalan

cada

/ˈkadə/

inherited

English

every

/ˈɛvɹi/

native English · Old English ǣfre ǣlc 'ever each'

English → Italianevery, eachogniNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: catalogue, category (Greek katá); omnibus, omnipotent (OMNIS).What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

CATA (Greek katá)‘by, each (distributive)’

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

The story

Spanish cada is a Greek preposition that spoken Latin picked up ('cata mane', every morning). Italian ogni keeps Latin OMNIS 'all'; French chaque is a back-formation from chacun.

English relatives: catalogue, category (Greek katá); omnibus, omnipotent (OMNIS)

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In a sentence

  • esCada niño recibe un libro.
  • frChaque enfant reçoit un livre.
  • itOgni bambino riceve un libro.
  • ptCada criança recebe um livro.
  • roFiecare copil primește o carte.
  • caCada nen rep un llibre.
  • enEvery child gets a book.

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