"star" in seven languages
Meaningstar
Spanish
estrella
/esˈtɾeʝa/
fem.inherited
The intrusive r is usually put down to the influence of Latin ASTRUM 'star'.
French
étoile
/etwal/
fem.inherited
From a spoken variant *STĒLA with a single l, via Old French estoile.
Italian
stella
/ˈstella/
fem.inherited
Portuguese
estrela
/isˈtɾelɐ/
fem.inherited
Romanian
stea
/ste̯a/
fem.inherited
plural: stele
Catalan
estrella
/əsˈtɾeʎə/
fem.inherited
estel (m) is the older native form, now mostly literary.
English
star
/stɑɹ/
Indo-European kin · PIE *h₂stḗr
English → ItalianstarstellaDistant cognateRelated only through Indo-European, thousands of years back (night ~ noche). But English has relatives: stellar, constellation.What English and Italian share
The Latin ancestor
STĒLLAM‘star’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Initial ST- shows the classic split: Spanish adds e-, French adds é- (once es-, the s later lost), Italian keeps bare st-.
English relatives: stellar, constellation
Sound laws at work
Learn it
In a sentence
- esDesde aquí se ven muchas estrellas.
- frD'ici, on voit beaucoup d'étoiles.
- itDa qui si vedono tante stelle.
- ptDaqui dá para ver muitas estrelas.
- roDe aici se văd multe stele.
- caDes d'aquí es veuen moltes estrelles.
- enYou can see many stars from here.