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"seed" in seven languages

Meaningseed

Spanish

semilla

/seˈmiʝa/

fem.inherited

From a Late Latin derivative of SĒMEN; the exact form is debated.

French

graine

/gʁɛn/

fem.other source · Latin GRĀNA, plural of GRĀNUM 'grain'

Semence, from the same root as Italian seme, is used for sowing seed.

Italian

seme

/ˈseme/

masc.inherited

Portuguese

semente

/seˈmẽtʃi/

fem.inherited

From SEMENTEM 'sowing', a derivative of SĒMEN.

Romanian

sămânță

/səˈmɨntsə/

fem.inherited

plural: semințe

From SEMENTIA, a Latin derivative of SĒMEN.

Catalan

llavor

/ʎəˈbo/

fem.other source · Latin LABŌREM 'labour; crop'

English

seed

/sid/

Indo-European kin · PIE *seh₁- 'to sow'

English → ItalianseedsemeDistant cognateRelated only through Indo-European, thousands of years back (night ~ noche). But English has relatives: seminal, seminar, disseminate.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

SĒMEN (neuter)‘seed’

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

The story

Italian seme is SĒMEN itself; Spanish semilla is built on the same root. French graine is a 'grain'. English seed and sow share an Indo-European root with SĒMEN.

English relatives: seminal, seminar, disseminate

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In a sentence

  • esPlanta las semillas en primavera.
  • frPlante les graines au printemps.
  • itPianta i semi in primavera.
  • ptPlante as sementes na primavera.
  • roSeamănă semințele primăvara.
  • caPlanta les llavors a la primavera.
  • enPlant the seeds in spring.

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