"to write" in seven languages
Meaningto write
Spanish
/eskɾiˈbiɾ/
inherited
French
/ekʁiʁ/
inherited
Italian
/ˈskrivere/
inherited
Portuguese
/eskɾeˈveh/
inherited
Romanian
/ˈskrie/
inherited
Catalan
/əsˈkɾiwɾə/
inherited
English
/ɹaɪt/
native English · Old English wrītan
The Latin ancestor
SCRĪBERE‘to write’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
A textbook s-impura: Latin SC- got a helping vowel in Spanish (es-) and French (é-, from es- with the s dropped), while Italian starts straight on s.
English relatives: scribe, script, describe, manuscript, scribble
Sound laws at work
Learn it
In a sentence
- esEscríbeme pronto.
- frÉcris-moi vite.
- itScrivimi presto.
- ptMe escreve logo.
- roScrie-mi curând.
- caEscriu-me aviat.
- enWrite to me soon.
The Latin family
SCRĪB-, SCRĪPT-· write
Initial SC- grew a prop vowel in Spanish (escribir) and French (Old French escrire → écrire), which later dropped the s and left an accent behind. Italian kept the cluster: scrivere, scritto. In this family even the inherited forms look close to Latin, because -PT- simply became -t- or -tt-. Portuguese escrever and Catalan escriure took the prop vowel too; Romanian scrie, like Italian, kept the bare cluster.
SCRĪBEREto write
esescribirfrécrireitscrivereptescreverroscriecaescriure
SCRĪPTUMwritten; a writing
esescritofrécrititscrittoptescritocaescritenscript
SCRĪPTŪRAMwriting
esescriturafrécritureitscritturaptescrituraroscripturăcaescripturaenscripture
DĒSCRĪBEREto write down, describe
esdescribirfrdécrireitdescrivereptdescreverrodescriecadescriureendescribe
SCRĪBAMclerk, scribe
esescribafrscribeitscribaptescribaroscribcaescribaenscribe
MANŪSCRĪPTUM (Medieval Latin)written by hand
esmanuscritofrmanuscrititmanoscrittoptmanuscritoromanuscriscamanuscritenmanuscript