"spring" in seven languages
Meaningspring
Spanish
primavera
/pɾimaˈbeɾa/
fem.inherited
French
printemps
/pʁɛ̃tɑ̃/
masc.other source · Latin PRĪMUM TEMPUS 'first time (of the year)'
Italian
primavera
/primaˈvɛra/
fem.inherited
Portuguese
primavera
/pɾimaˈvɛɾɐ/
fem.inherited
Romanian
primăvară
/priməˈvarə/
fem.inherited
Catalan
primavera
/pɾiməˈbɛɾə/
fem.inherited
English
spring
/spɹɪŋ/
native English · Old English springan 'to leap, burst forth'
English → ItalianspringprimaveraNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: vernal, prime.What English and Italian share
The Latin ancestor
*PRĪMA VĒRA (from VĒR 'spring')‘early spring’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Classical VĒR was too short to last, so everyone said 'the first…': first spring in Spanish and Italian, 'first time' in French.
English relatives: vernal, prime
Learn it
In a sentence
- esEn primavera florecen los árboles.
- frAu printemps, les arbres fleurissent.
- itIn primavera fioriscono gli alberi.
- ptNa primavera as árvores florescem.
- roPrimăvara înfloresc copacii.
- caA la primavera els arbres floreixen.
- enIn spring the trees blossom.