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"glass (for drinking)" in seven languages

Meaningglass (for drinking)

Spanish

vaso

/ˈbaso/

masc.other source · Latin VĀSUM 'vessel'

The material is vidrio (or cristal); a wine glass is una copa.

French

verre

/vɛʁ/

masc.inherited

One word for both the material and the drinking glass.

Italian

bicchiere

/bikˈkjɛre/

masc.other source · Late Latin *BICĀRIUM, from Greek bîkos 'jar'

The material is vetro, French verre's cognate.

Portuguese

copo

/ˈkɔpu/

masc.other source · Latin CUPPAM 'cup'

Romanian

pahar

/paˈhar/

neut.other source · Hungarian pohár (from Slavic)

Catalan

got

/gɔt/

masc.other source · Latin GUTTUM 'narrow-necked flask'

English

glass

/glæs/

native English · Old English glæs

English → Italianglass (for drinking)bicchiereNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: vitreous, vitrine; vase (VĀSUM); beaker (*BICĀRIUM).What English and Italian share

Watch out: false friends

  • vaso (Italian) means “pot, vase, jar” · vaso (Spanish) means “drinking glass”

    Both from Latin VĀS 'vessel' (also VĀSUM). Spanish drank from it; Italian keeps flowers and jam in it.

All false friends

The Latin ancestor

VITRUM‘glass (the material)’

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

The story

French drinks from 'glass', Spanish from a 'vessel', Italian from a Greek 'jar' — a cognate of English beaker. Watch out: Italian vaso is a vase or a pot.

English relatives: vitreous, vitrine; vase (VĀSUM); beaker (*BICĀRIUM)

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In a sentence

  • esUn vaso de agua, por favor.
  • frUn verre d'eau, s'il vous plaît.
  • itUn bicchiere d'acqua, per favore.
  • ptUm copo d'água, por favor.
  • roUn pahar cu apă, vă rog.
  • caUn got d'aigua, si us plau.
  • enA glass of water, please.

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