"war" in seven languages
Meaningwar
Spanish
guerra
/ˈgera/
fem.inherited
French
guerre
/gɛʁ/
fem.inherited
Italian
guerra
/ˈgwɛrra/
fem.inherited
Portuguese
guerra
/ˈgɛhɐ/
fem.inherited
Romanian
război
/rəzˈboj/
neut.other source · Slavic razboj 'robbery, fighting'
plural: războaie
Catalan
guerra
/ˈgɛrə/
fem.inherited
English
war
/wɔɹ/
from Latin/French · Old North French werre
English → ItalianwarguerraCognateSame source — inherited, learned or borrowed. You can recognize it.What English and Italian share
The ancestor
Frankish *werra‘strife, confusion’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Latin BELLUM 'war' did not survive in speech; a Germanic word took over, its w- becoming gu-. Only Italian still pronounces the u; English war comes from Norman French werre, which kept the w.
English relatives: war; belligerent (from Latin BELLUM)
Sound laws at work
Learn it
In a sentence
- esGuerra y paz.
- frLa guerre et la paix.
- itGuerra e pace.
- ptGuerra e paz.
- roRăzboi și pace.
- caGuerra i pau.
- enWar and peace.