"to find" in seven languages

Meaningto find

Spanish

encontrar

/enkonˈtɾaɾ/

other source · Late Latin *INCONTRĀRE 'to come up against', from CONTRĀ 'against'

Hallar (← AFFLĀRE) is the literary 'find'.

French

trouver

/tʁuve/

inherited

Italian

trovare

/troˈvare/

inherited

Portuguese

encontrar

/ẽkõˈtɾah/

other source · Late Latin *INCONTRĀRE 'to come up against', from CONTRĀ 'against'

Brazilians also say achar (não acho minhas chaves).

Romanian

găsi

/gəˈsi/

other source · of uncertain origin

Catalan

trobar

/tɾuˈba/

inherited

English

find

/faɪnd/

native English · Old English findan

English → Italianto findtrovareNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh. But English has relatives: troubadour (via Occitan); encounter (from *INCONTRĀRE).What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

*TROPĀRE (disputed)‘perhaps 'to compose verse' (from TROPUS 'figure, melody')’

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

The story

French and Italian probably 'find' the way poets found a tune: the troubadour (Occitan trobador) was literally 'the finder'. The source *TROPĀRE is disputed. Spanish finds by bumping into things: encontrar, English encounter.

English relatives: troubadour (via Occitan); encounter (from *INCONTRĀRE)

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In a sentence

esNo encuentro las llaves.
frJe ne trouve pas mes clés.
itNon trovo le chiavi.
ptNão encontro minhas chaves.
roNu-mi găsesc cheile.
caNo trobo les claus.
enI can't find my keys.

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