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"to contain" in seven languages

Meaningto contain

Spanish

contener

/konteˈneɾ/

inherited

Conjugates like tener: contiene, contuvo.

French

contenir

/kɔ̃tniʁ/

inherited

Conjugates like tenir: contient.

Italian

contenere

/konteˈnere/

inherited

Conjugates like tenere: contiene.

Portuguese

conter

/kõˈteh/

inherited

Romanian

conține

/konˈtsine/

learned

Catalan

contenir

/kuntəˈni/

inherited

English

contain

/kənˈteɪn/

from Latin/French · Old French contenir

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

The Latin ancestor

CONTINĒRE‘to hold together (CON + TENĒRE)’

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

The story

Spoken Latin rebuilt CONTINĒRE on TENĒRE 'to hold', so in each sister it conjugates exactly like the word for 'to have, to hold' — stressed e and all: contiene, contient, contiene.

English relatives: content, container, continent, continue

Sound laws at work

Stressed short E breaks into ie

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In a sentence

  • esEsta botella contiene un litro de agua.
  • frCette bouteille contient un litre d'eau.
  • itQuesta bottiglia contiene un litro d'acqua.
  • ptEsta garrafa contém um litro de água.
  • roSticla asta conține un litru de apă.
  • caAquesta ampolla conté un litre d'aigua.
  • enThis bottle contains a litre of water.

More words from the same Latin

More in Core verbs

All Core verbs words