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"minimum" in seven languages

Meaningminimum

Spanish

mínimo

/ˈminimo/

masc.learned

French

minimum

/minimɔm/

masc.learned

Taken straight from Latin, like English.

Italian

minimo

/ˈminimo/

masc.learned

Portuguese

mínimo

/ˈminimu/

masc.learned

Romanian

minim

/ˈminim/

neut.learned

Catalan

mínim

/ˈminim/

masc.learned

English

minimum

/ˈmɪnəməm/

from Latin/French · Latin

English → ItalianminimumminimoCognateSame source — inherited, learned or borrowed. You can recognize it.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

MINIMUM‘the least (superlative of PARVUS 'small')’

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

The story

Latin's 'smallest'. French and English kept the Latin form whole; Spanish and Italian gave it a native -o. The inherited cousins are menos, moins, meno 'less'.

English relatives: minimal, minimize; minor, minus (same root)

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In a sentence

  • esDos horas es el mínimo.
  • frDeux heures, c'est le minimum.
  • itDue ore sono il minimo.
  • ptDuas horas é o mínimo.
  • roMinimul este de două ore.
  • caDues hores és el mínim.
  • enTwo hours is the minimum.

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