"firm, steady" in seven languages
Meaningfirm, steady
Spanish
firme
/ˈfiɾme/
learned
Semi-learned: the Latin i was kept.
French
ferme
/fɛʁm/
inherited
Also a noun, 'farm', and a form of fermer 'to close'.
Italian
fermo
/ˈfermo/
inherited
Also 'still, stopped': stai fermo! 'keep still!'
Portuguese
firme
/ˈfihmi/
learned
Semi-learned like Spanish firme: the Latin i was kept.
Romanian
ferm
/ferm/
borrowed · French ferme
Catalan
ferm
/ferm/
inherited
Short Latin i became e, the regular outcome.
English
firm
/fɝm/
from Latin/French · Old French ferme / Latin firmus
English → Italianfirm, steadyfermoCognateSame source — inherited, learned or borrowed. You can recognize it.What English and Italian share
The Latin ancestor
FIRMUM‘firm, strong’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Short Latin i became e in French and Italian (ferme, fermo), the regular outcome; Spanish firme kept the Latin vowel, the mark of a learned word.
English relatives: confirm, affirm, firmament, farm
Learn it
In a sentence
- esHabló con voz firme.
- frElle a parlé d'une voix ferme.
- itHa parlato con voce ferma.
- ptEla falou com voz firme.
- roA vorbit cu o voce fermă.
- caVa parlar amb veu ferma.
- enShe spoke in a firm voice.
More in Describing words
- negativenegativonégatifnegativonegativonegativnegatiu
- aware (of)conscienteconscientconsapevoleconscienteconștientconscient
- easternorientalorientalorientaleorientalorientaloriental
- impossibleimposibleimpossibleimpossibileimpossívelimposibilimpossible
- luckyafortunadochanceuxfortunatosortudonorocosafortunat
- rare (uncommon)rarorarerarorarorarrar