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"feather" in seven languages

Meaningfeather

Spanish

pluma

/ˈpluma/

fem.inherited

Also a pen (a ballpoint is a bolígrafo).

French

plume

/plym/

fem.inherited

Also a pen nib: une plume is a fountain pen.

Italian

piuma

/ˈpjuma/

fem.inherited

A quill or pen is a penna, from PENNA.

Portuguese

pena

/ˈpenɐ/

fem.other source · Latin PENNA 'flight feather, quill'

Pluma also exists, for fine plumage.

Romanian

pană

/ˈpanə/

fem.other source · Latin PENNA 'flight feather, quill'

A homonym, from French panne, is a car breakdown.

Catalan

ploma

/ˈplɔmə/

fem.inherited

Also a pen.

English

feather

/ˈfɛðɚ/

native English · Old English feþer

A Germanic cousin of Latin PENNA, not of PLŪMA.

English → ItalianfeatherpiumaNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: plume, plumage.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

PLŪMAM‘soft feather, down’

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

The story

Latin had PENNA for the stiff flight feather (and the quill: English pen) and PLŪMA for down. Spanish, French, Italian and Catalan chose the soft one; Portuguese pena and Romanian pană kept the quill.

English relatives: plume, plumage

Sound laws at work

CL-, PL-, FL- at the start of a wordFrench fronts long U to [y]

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In a sentence

  • esAl pájaro se le cayó una pluma.
  • frL'oiseau a perdu une plume.
  • itL'uccello ha perso una piuma.
  • ptO passarinho perdeu uma pena.
  • roPasărea și-a pierdut o pană.
  • caL'ocell ha perdut una ploma.
  • enThe bird lost a feather.

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