"while" in seven languages
Meaningwhile
Spanish
mientras
/ˈmjentɾas/
inherited
Old Spanish domientre, with an adverbial -s; mientras tanto 'meanwhile'.
French
pendant que
/pɑ̃dɑ̃ kə/
other source · pendant 'hanging, pending' (Latin PENDENTEM) + que
Italian
mentre
/ˈmentre/
inherited
Portuguese
enquanto
/ẽˈkwɐ̃tu/
other source · Latin IN QUANTŌ 'in as much as'
Romanian
în timp ce
/ɨn timp tʃe/
other source · 'in the time that' (Latin TEMPUS 'time')
Catalan
mentre
/ˈmentɾə/
inherited
English
while
/waɪl/
native English · Old English hwīl 'a time'
English → ItalianwhilementreNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh.What English and Italian share
The Latin ancestor
DUM INTERIM‘while, meanwhile’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Spoken Latin fused DUM 'while' and INTERIM 'meanwhile' into *domentre, the source of Spanish mientras and Italian mentre. French says 'pending that': pendant que.
Learn it
In a sentence
- esEscucho música mientras cocino.
- frJ'écoute de la musique pendant que je cuisine.
- itAscolto musica mentre cucino.
- ptEscuto música enquanto cozinho.
- roAscult muzică în timp ce gătesc.
- caEscolto música mentre cuino.
- enI listen to music while I cook.