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"sound" in seven languages

Meaningsound

Spanish

sonido

/soˈnido/

masc.other source · Latin SONITUM 'noise', remade on sonar

Son exists too, but means a tune or a Cuban musical style.

French

son

/sɔ̃/

masc.inherited

A noise is usually un bruit.

Italian

suono

/ˈswɔno/

masc.inherited

Portuguese

som

/sõ/

masc.inherited

Romanian

sunet

/ˈsunet/

neut.other source · Latin SONITUM 'noise'

Catalan

so

/sɔ/

masc.inherited

Catalan drops the final -n: SONUM → so, as MANUM → mà.

English

sound

/saʊnd/

from Latin/French · Anglo-French soun (the final d was added in English)

English → ItaliansoundsuonoCognateSame source — inherited, learned or borrowed. You can recognize it.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

SONUM‘sound’

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

The story

Italian breaks the open ŏ into uo, French turns -on into a nasal vowel, and Spanish uses a longer relative, SONITUS. The d at the end of English sound is a late addition, like the one in English bound.

English relatives: sonic, sonar, resonate, consonant

Sound laws at work

Stressed short O breaks into ue / uo / euFrench vowel + nasal becomes a nasal vowel

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In a sentence

  • esEsta guitarra tiene un sonido precioso.
  • frCette guitare a un très beau son.
  • itQuesta chitarra ha un suono bellissimo.
  • ptEste violão tem um som lindo.
  • roChitara asta are un sunet minunat.
  • caAquesta guitarra té un so preciós.
  • enThis guitar has a beautiful sound.

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