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"soul" in seven languages

Meaningsoul

Spanish

alma

/ˈalma/

fem.inherited

el alma (feminine noun with stressed a-: las almas)

French

âme

/am/

fem.inherited

Italian

anima

/ˈanima/

fem.inherited

Portuguese

alma

/ˈawmɐ/

fem.inherited

Romanian

suflet

/ˈsuflet/

neut.other source · Latin *SUFFLETUM, from SUFFLĀRE 'to blow, breathe'

plural: suflete

Like ANIMA, the Romanian soul is a 'breath'.

Catalan

ànima

/ˈanimə/

fem.learned

Old Catalan had the inherited arma, later replaced by the Latin shape.

English

soul

/soʊl/

native English · Old English sāwol

English → ItaliansoulanimaNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: animal, animate, unanimous.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

ANIMAM‘breath, soul’

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

The story

Italian keeps all three syllables; Spanish dropped the middle vowel and turned the resulting nm into lm (alma); French reduced it to âme, the circumflex marking the lost consonant. An animal is a 'breathing' creature.

English relatives: animal, animate, unanimous

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In a sentence

  • esCon toda mi alma.
  • frDe toute mon âme.
  • itCon tutta l'anima.
  • ptCom toda a minha alma.
  • roDin tot sufletul.
  • caAmb tota l'ànima.
  • enWith all my soul.

More in Ideas

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