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"to cry, to weep" in seven languages

Meaningto cry, to weep

Spanish

llorar

/ʝoˈɾaɾ/

inherited

French

pleurer

/plœʁe/

inherited

Italian

piangere

/ˈpjandʒere/

other source · Latin PLANGERE 'to beat (one's breast) in mourning'

Portuguese

chorar

/ʃoˈɾah/

inherited

Portuguese turned PL- into ch- [ʃ], as in chuva ← PLUVIAM.

Romanian

plânge

/ˈplɨndʒe/

other source · Latin PLANGERE 'to beat (one's breast) in mourning'

Catalan

plorar

/pluˈɾa/

inherited

Catalan keeps the PL- that Spanish made ll-.

English

cry

/kɹaɪ/

other source · Old French crier

English → Italianto cry, to weeppiangereNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: deplore, implore (PLŌRĀRE); plaintive, complain (PLANGERE).What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

PLŌRĀRE‘to wail, weep aloud’

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

The story

Spanish ll- and French pl- are the same PL- — and Italian, with a different verb, still shows its pi- outcome. Romans mourned out loud: both verbs describe wailing and breast-beating.

English relatives: deplore, implore (PLŌRĀRE); plaintive, complain (PLANGERE)

Sound laws at work

CL-, PL-, FL- at the start of a word

Learn it

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In a sentence

  • es¿Por qué lloras?
  • frPourquoi tu pleures ?
  • itPerché piangi?
  • ptPor que você está chorando?
  • roDe ce plângi?
  • caPer què plores?
  • enWhy are you crying?

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