"please" in seven languages
Meaningplease
Spanish
/poɾ faˈboɾ/
learned
French
/sil vu plɛ/
other source · Latin PLACĒRE 'to please' ('if it pleases you')
To a friend: s'il te plaît.
Italian
/per faˈvore/
learned
Also per piacere (from PLACĒRE, like the French).
Portuguese
/poh faˈvoh/
learned
Romanian
/və rog/
other source · Romanian 'I ask you', from ruga ← Latin ROGĀRE
Te rog to someone you call tu.
Catalan
/si us plaw/
other source · Latin PLACĒRE 'to please' ('if it pleases you')
English
/pliz/
other source · Old French plaisir (Latin PLACĒRE)
The Latin ancestor
FAVŌREM‘goodwill, favor’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Spanish and Italian ask 'as a favor'; French asks 'if it pleases you' — and Italian per piacere bridges the two. Note the prepositions: Spanish por and Italian per both go back to Latin PER / PRŌ.
English relatives: favor, favorite; please, pleasure, placid
Learn it
In a sentence
- esUn café, por favor.
- frUn café, s'il vous plaît.
- itUn caffè, per favore.
- ptUm café, por favor.
- roO cafea, vă rog.
- caUn cafè, si us plau.
- enA coffee, please.