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"to cover" in seven languages

Meaningto cover

Spanish

cubrir

/kuˈbɾiɾ/

inherited

Participle cubierto, also 'cutlery'.

French

couvrir

/kuvʁiʁ/

inherited

Participle couvert, also 'place setting'.

Italian

coprire

/koˈprire/

inherited

Participle coperto, also the cover charge at a restaurant.

Portuguese

cobrir

/koˈbɾih/

inherited

Romanian

acoperi

/akopeˈri/

inherited

Inherited with an extra a- prefix in front of the Latin verb.

Catalan

cobrir

/kuˈbɾi/

inherited

English

cover

/ˈkʌvɚ/

from Latin/French · Old French covrir

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

The Latin ancestor

COOPERĪRE‘to cover completely’

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

The story

The middle P shows the lenition ladder: Spanish voiced it to b, French went further to v, Italian kept p. All three participles (cubierto, couvert, coperto) also name something on the dinner table.

English relatives: cover, discover, kerchief (French couvre-chef 'head cover')

Sound laws at work

Voiceless stops between vowels soften

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In a sentence

  • esLa nieve cubrió los tejados.
  • frLa neige a couvert les toits.
  • itLa neve ha coperto i tetti.
  • ptA neve cobriu os telhados.
  • roZăpada a acoperit acoperișurile.
  • caLa neu va cobrir les teulades.
  • enSnow covered the roofs.

More in Core verbs

All Core verbs words