"regular" in seven languages
Meaningregular
Spanish
regular
/reguˈlaɾ/
learned
Also 'so-so': ¿Qué tal? — Regular.
French
régulier
/ʁegylje/
learned
fem.: régulière
Italian
regolare
/regoˈlare/
learned
Portuguese
regular
/heɡuˈlah/
learned
Romanian
regulat
/reɡuˈlat/
other source · participle of regula 'to regulate', from French régler (Latin RĒGULA)
Catalan
regular
/rəɡuˈlaɾ/
learned
English
regular
/ˈɹɛgjəlɚ/
from Latin/French · Old French reguler (Latin RĒGULĀRIS)
English → ItalianregularregolareCognateSame source — inherited, learned or borrowed. You can recognize it.What English and Italian share
The Latin ancestor
RĒGULĀREM‘according to rule (from RĒGULA)’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
French swapped the Latin ending for its own -ier. A Spanish trap: '¿Cómo estás? — Regular' means 'so-so', not 'fine as usual'.
English relatives: rule, regulate, regulation
Learn it
In a sentence
- esLos verbos regulares son fáciles.
- frLes verbes réguliers sont faciles.
- itI verbi regolari sono facili.
- ptOs verbos regulares são fáceis.
- roVerbele regulate sunt ușoare.
- caEls verbs regulars són fàcils.
- enRegular verbs are easy.