"happiness" in seven languages
Meaninghappiness
Spanish
felicidad
/feliθiˈdad/
fem.learned
French
bonheur
/bɔnœʁ/
masc.other source · bon 'good' + heur 'luck' (← AUGURIUM 'omen')
Its opposite malheur is 'misfortune'; félicité exists but is literary.
Italian
felicità
/felitʃiˈta/
fem.learned
Portuguese
felicidade
/felisiˈdadʒi/
fem.learned
Romanian
fericire
/feriˈtʃire/
fem.other source · from ferici 'to make happy', built on old ferice ← Latin FĒLĪCEM
Catalan
felicitat
/fəlisiˈtat/
fem.learned
English
happiness
/ˈhæpinəs/
other source · happy (Old Norse happ) + -ness
English → ItalianhappinessfelicitàNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: felicity.What English and Italian share
The Latin ancestor
FĒLĪCITĀTEM‘good fortune, happiness’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Spanish and Italian show the -TĀTEM ending (-dad, -tà). French happiness is literally 'good omen': bon + heur, from the augurs who read the birds.
English relatives: felicity
Sound laws at work
Learn it
In a sentence
- esEl dinero no da la felicidad.
- frL'argent ne fait pas le bonheur.
- itI soldi non fanno la felicità.
- ptDinheiro não traz felicidade.
- roBanii nu aduc fericirea.
- caEls diners no fan la felicitat.
- enMoney doesn't buy happiness.
More words from the same Latin
More in Feelings
- angerenfadocolèrerabbiaraivafurieràbia
- hopeesperanzaespoirsperanzaesperançasperanțăesperança
- worriedpreocupadoinquietpreoccupatopreocupadoîngrijoratpreocupat
- calmtranquilocalmetranquillotranquilocalmtranquil
- shamevergüenzahontevergognavergonharușinevergonya
- prideorgulloorgueilorgoglioorgulhomândrieorgull