"narrow" in seven languages
Meaningnarrow
Spanish
estrecho
/esˈtɾetʃo/
inherited
French
étroit
/etʁwa/
inherited
Italian
stretto
/ˈstretto/
inherited
Portuguese
estreito
/esˈtɾejtu/
inherited
Latin -CT- became -it-: STRICTUM → estreito, as NOCTEM → noite.
Romanian
îngust
/ɨnˈɡust/
other source · Latin ANGUSTUM 'narrow'
Catalan
estret
/əsˈtɾɛt/
inherited
English
narrow
/ˈnɛɹoʊ/
native English · Old English nearu
English → ItaliannarrowstrettoNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: strict, constrict, strait, restrict.What English and Italian share
The Latin ancestor
STRICTUM‘drawn tight (STRINGERE 'to bind')’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
STRICTUM shows two laws at once: the CT cluster (estrecho, étroit, stretto) and the prop vowel before S + consonant (es-, é-, s-). English has it twice: learned strict and French-borrowed strait.
English relatives: strict, constrict, strait, restrict
Sound laws at work
Learn it
In a sentence
- esLa calle es muy estrecha.
- frLa rue est très étroite.
- itLa strada è molto stretta.
- ptA rua é muito estreita.
- roStrada este foarte îngustă.
- caEl carrer és molt estret.
- enThe street is very narrow.