"frog" in seven languages
Meaningfrog
Spanish
rana
/ˈrana/
fem.inherited
French
grenouille
/gʁənuj/
fem.inherited
From a diminutive *RANUCULA (Old French reinoille); the initial g- is not fully explained.
Italian
rana
/ˈrana/
fem.inherited
Portuguese
rã
/hɐ̃/
fem.inherited
Portuguese loses intervocalic -n-, leaving only nasality: RĀNAM → rã. Sapo is a toad.
Romanian
broască
/ˈbro̯askə/
fem.other source · of uncertain origin
Catalan
granota
/grəˈnɔtə/
fem.inherited
Like French grenouille, a reshaped diminutive of RĀNA with a g- added.
English
frog
/fɹɑɡ/
native English · Old English frogga
English → ItalianfrogranaNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh.What English and Italian share
The Latin ancestor
RĀNAM‘frog’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Spanish and Italian are identical (rana, rana); French hid the same frog inside a diminutive with an unexplained g- in front.
Learn it
In a sentence
- esLas ranas croan por la noche.
- frLes grenouilles coassent la nuit.
- itLe rane gracidano di notte.
- ptAs rãs coaxam à noite.
- roBroaștele orăcăie noaptea.
- caLes granotes rauquen de nit.
- enThe frogs croak at night.