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"football (soccer)" in seven languages

Meaningfootball (soccer)

Spanish

fútbol

/ˈfutbol/

masc.borrowed · English football

Mexico and parts of Central America say futbol, stressed on the last syllable.

French

football

/futbol/

masc.borrowed · English football

Usually shortened to le foot.

Italian

calcio

/ˈkaltʃo/

masc.other source · Italian calcio 'kick', from calciare (Latin CALX 'heel')

Named after Florentine calcio, a Renaissance ball game.

Portuguese

futebol

/futʃiˈbɔw/

masc.borrowed · English football

Romanian

fotbal

/ˈfotbal/

neut.borrowed · English football

Catalan

futbol

/fudˈbɔl/

masc.borrowed · English football

English

football

/ˈfʊtbɔl/

from Latin/French · English foot + ball

American English says soccer, from 'Association football'.

English → Italianfootball (soccer)calcioNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh.What English and Italian share

The ancestor

English football‘ball game played with the feet’

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

The story

Spanish and French took the English name with the game; Italian refused and gave it the name of its own old ball game, 'kick'. The heel, CALX, also gave English calcaneus.

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In a sentence

  • es¿Te gusta el fútbol?
  • frTu aimes le football ?
  • itTi piace il calcio?
  • ptVocê gosta de futebol?
  • roÎți place fotbalul?
  • caT'agrada el futbol?
  • enDo you like football?

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