Romanian words from Latin
2012 Romanian words with Latin in their history, whether borrowed directly or passed on through other languages (page 12).
fragă
It is inherited from Latin frāga (“strawberries”), the neuter plural of frāgum, taken as a feminine singular. The same reading of the plural shows in other Romance languages, but Romanian also has a…
fraged
It is inherited from Latin, but the dictionaries name two different Latin adjectives. According to DEX, MDA2, the DA, Candrea and Densusianu and CADE, it is inherited from Vulgar Latin *fragidus, a…
frământa
Its Latin source is disputed. In the Academy dictionaries it is inherited from Vulgar Latin *fragmentō (“to break into pieces”), formed on fragmentum (“fragment”). The DA explains that the original…
frâmbiat
It is inherited from Latin fimbriātus (“fringed, adorned with ribbons”). Ciorănescu follows the DA here and compares frânghie. The adjective is formed from Latin fimbriae (“fibres, fringe”) + -ātus.
frânge
It is inherited from Latin frangō (“to break”). The Latin verb has a nasal infix in the present and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- (“to break”). The verb survives south of the Danube…
frânghie
It is inherited from Latin fimbria (“fringe, border”), a word used in classical Latin mostly in the plural, fimbriae. The /r/ moved into the first syllable early, as in the other Romance forms…
frântură
Its origin is disputed. One view takes it as inherited from Vulgar Latin *franctura, a by-form of Latin frāctūra (“a breaking, fracture”), itself formed on frangō (“to break”). Candrea and…
frasin
It is inherited from Latin fraxinus (“ash tree”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian frapsin, Megleno-Romanian frasin and Istro-Romanian frǫsir. Its Romance cognates include Italian…
frate
It is inherited from Latin frāter (“brother”), continuing either the nominative or the accusative frātrem, which lost its second /r/. The Latin noun comes from Proto-Indo-European *bʰréh₂tēr. The…
frâu
It is inherited from Latin frēnum (“bridle, bit, reins”). The word survives south of the Danube: Aromanian frãn, with the forms fãrnu and frãnu, and Megleno-Romanian frǫn. Its Romance cognates…
freamăt
It is inherited from Latin fremitus (“a roar, rumble, murmur”). The Latin noun is formed on fremō (“to roar, rumble”) with the suffix -tus. De Vaan traces the verb to Proto-Indo-European *bʰrem-…
freca
It is inherited from Latin fricō (“to rub”). Wiktionary takes the Latin verb as an intensive popular form of friō. The word survives south of the Danube: Aromanian frec and Megleno-Romanian frec…
frecătură
It is inherited from Latin fricātūra (“rubbing down”). The Latin noun, used by Vitruvius of smoothing a wall, is formed on fricō (“to rub”). Ciorănescu and Tiktin list it among the derivatives of…
frig
It is inherited from Latin frīgus (“cold, frost”). The plural friguri “fever” continues a Latin use: Celsus already used the noun for the shivering of fever, and its plural is recorded with the…
frige
It is inherited from Latin frīgō (“to roast, to fry”). De Vaan notes that Ancient Greek φρύγω (phrúgō, “to roast”) is very close in form and sense but cannot be matched by the sound laws, so the…
friguros
It is inherited from Late Latin frīgorōsus (“cold, frosty”), a Late Latin formation on frīgus (“cold”) with the suffix -ōsus. The Latin adjective is recorded in late sources, and the REW lists the…
friptură
Most dictionaries say it is inherited from Vulgar Latin *frīctūra, a noun formed on frīctus, the past participle of frīgō (“to roast, fry”). Ciorănescu takes it as formed from Romanian fript + -ură…
fruct
It is borrowed from Latin frūctus (“fruit; enjoyment, profit”), a learned loan of the 19th century, as DER, DEX, MDA2, DN and the DA agree. The Latin noun is formed on fruor (“to enjoy”). Gabinschi…
frumos
It is inherited from Latin fōrmōsus (“shapely, beautiful”), from forma (“form, shape”). Its Romance cognates include Italian formoso, Occitan formos, Spanish hermoso and Portuguese formoso…
frumusețe
It is formed from Romanian frumos + -ețe, the adjective “beautiful” with the suffix of abstract nouns. The adjective is from Latin fōrmōsus (“beautiful, shapely”).
fruntar
It is formed from Romanian frunte + -ar, in the view of MDA2 and Ciorănescu. Others take it straight from Latin: Pascu, the REW and the DA from Latin frontāle (“frontlet, headband of a horse”)…
frunte
It is inherited from Latin frontem (“forehead”). The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian frãmte, Megleno-Romanian frînte and Istro-Romanian frunte. Its Romance cognates include Italian…
frunză
It is inherited from Late Latin frondia (“foliage”), a neuter plural that became a feminine singular with a collective sense. Wiktionary describes the Late Latin word as a collective noun built on…
frupt
It is inherited from Latin frūctus (“enjoyment, produce, fruit”), used in Romanian in the general sense “produce”. It survives as Istro-Romanian frupt. The Aromanian word for “fruit”, frut, has a…
fugă
1. The word for running and flight is inherited from Latin fuga (“flight”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian fugă, Megleno-Romanian fugă and Istro-Romanian fuge. Its Romance cognates…
fugaci
It is inherited from Latin fugāx (“apt to flee, swift”) in the view of DEX, MDA2, Tiktin and Candrea–Densusianu. The Latin adjective is formed on fugiō (“to flee”) with the suffix -āx (“inclined…
fugi
It is inherited from Latin fugiō (“to flee”), in its popular form with the infinitive in ⟨-īre⟩ instead of classical ⟨-ere⟩. The Latin verb goes back to Proto-Indo-European *bʰewg-. It survives in…
fuior
Its origin is uncertain: DEX calls it of unknown origin. Ciorănescu thinks it probably inherited from Latin fŏliola, a diminutive of folium (“leaf”). The regular outcome would be fuioară, kept in…
fulger
It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *fulger, from the oblique stem ⟨fulger-⟩ of fulgur (“lightning”) beside the usual ⟨fulgur-⟩. The stem ⟨fulger-⟩ is attested in Lucretius and in inscriptions, and…
fulgera
It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *fulgerō (“to lighten”), the popular form of Latin fulgurō. Its ⟨e⟩ matches the noun fulger “lightning”, which continues fulger, a variant of the attested fulgur…
fum
It is inherited from Latin fūmus (“smoke”). The Latin word goes back through Proto-Italic to Proto-Indo-European *dʰuh₂mós (“smoke”), with cognates such as Sanskrit धूम (dhūmá) and Old Church…
fuma
It is inherited from Latin fūmō (“to smoke, give off smoke”), from fūmus (“smoke”). Ciorănescu lists it among the derivatives of fum “smoke”, but adds that it probably continues the Latin verb. Its…
fumar
It is inherited from Latin fūmārium (“smoke chamber”) in the view of the DA, DEX, MDA2 and Candrea–Densusianu, and the REW lists it under that word. Ciorănescu lists it instead among the Romanian…
fumega
It is inherited from Latin fūmigō (“to smoke, fumigate”). Pușcariu (EWRS no. 670), Candrea and Densusianu (no. 678), the REW and the DA all give this etymon. The Latin verb is formed on fūmus…
fund
It is inherited from Latin fundus (“bottom; landed estate”). De Vaan explains the Latin word as a metathesis of Proto-Indo-European *bʰudʰ-n-ó- (“bottom”), and compares Ancient Greek πυθμήν…
funie
It is inherited from Latin fūnis (“rope, cable”) (accusative ⟨fūnem⟩). The old form was fune. The origin of the Latin word is uncertain: de Vaan suggests an o-grade derivative of the root of fīlum…
funigel
DEX and NODEX call the word of unknown origin. Ciorănescu takes it as inherited from Vulgar Latin *fūnicellus, a diminutive of Latin fūnis (“rope”), and Wiktionary follows him: the threads of…
funingine
It is inherited from Latin fūlīgō (“soot”), from its accusative fūlīginem. It survives in Aromanian furidzinã, also ⟨fulidzine⟩. Its Romance cognates include Italian fuliggine, Spanish hollín and…
fur
It is inherited from Latin fūr (“thief”). Pușcariu (no. 676), Candrea–Densusianu (no. 689) and the REW list it among the inherited words. The Latin noun comes from *bʰṓr (“thief”), a cognate of…
fura
It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *fūrō (“to steal”), the active counterpart of the deponent Latin fūror (“to steal”). The Latin verb is formed on fūr (“thief”). The verb survives in all four…
furcă
It is inherited from Latin furca (“fork”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian furcã, Megleno-Romanian furcă and Istro-Romanian furke. Its Romance cognates include Italian forca, French…
furcea
Pușcariu takes it as inherited from Latin furcilla (“little fork”) or a Latin *furcella, and Candrea and Densusianu give the same two etyma. The REW places it under the same etymon beside Sardinian…
furie
It is borrowed from Latin furia (“rage, fury”), also borrowed from French furie. Ciorănescu and Wiktionary give Latin, dating the word to the 18th century, while DEX, MDA2 and the neologism…
furnică
It is inherited from Latin formīca (“ant”). Romanian has /n/ where Latin had /m/: Candrea and Densusianu explained this by the influence of the labial, but Ciorănescu takes the dialect forms with…
furnicar
1. The word for the anthill is inherited from Vulgar Latin *formīcārium, a derivative of Latin formīca (“ant”). DEX 2009, MDA2 and DLRM write the etymon as Latin formicarius. Ciorănescu reports the…
furnicel
It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *furuncellus, formed in place of Latin furunculus (“boil; petty thief”). The etymon was proposed by Ovid Densusianu in the journal Romania (vol. 33) and is accepted…
furt
It is inherited from Latin fūrtum (“theft”), from fūr (“thief”). Ciorănescu follows Pușcariu, Candrea and Densusianu and the REW. It survives in Aromanian furtu. Its Romance cognates are Italian…
furtună
Its origin is disputed: Ciorănescu takes it as inherited from Latin fortūna (“fortune, luck”), like the Romance words that also mean “storm”: Italian fortuna, French fortune and Spanish fortuna. He…
fus
1. The word for the spindle is inherited from Latin fūsus (“spindle”). The origin of the Latin word is unknown. The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian fus, Megleno-Romanian fus and…
fuscel
It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *fusticellus (“little stick”), a diminutive of Latin fustis (“stick, stake”). Ciorănescu follows Candrea and Densusianu, Pușcariu and the REW here. Tiktin explains…
fuște
It is inherited from Latin fustis (“stick, cudgel”). The word survives south of the Danube: Aromanian fuște “blows with a stick” and Megleno-Romanian fușt “the rods of a loom”. Its Romance cognates…
fute
It is inherited from Latin futuō (“to have sex with (a woman)”). The verb survives in all four branches: Aromanian fut, Megleno-Romanian fut and the Istro-Romanian form. Its Romance cognates include…
găină
It is inherited from Latin gallīna (“hen”). The Latin noun was formed on gallus (“rooster”) with the suffix -īna. The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian gãljinã, Megleno-Romanian găľină…
găinar
It is formed from Romanian găină + -ar, with the agent suffix. Candrea and Densusianu and Șăineanu derive it instead from Latin gallīnārius (“poultry keeper”), whose sound they think was reshaped…
găinaț
It is inherited from Latin gallīnāceus (“of hens”), the adjective of gallīna (“hen”), used with stercus (“dung”) or fimus (“manure”) understood. Ciorănescu follows Pușcariu, Densusianu, Candrea and…
galben
It is inherited from Latin galbinus (“greenish-yellow”). The Latin word is first found in imperial authors such as Petronius and Martial, of greenish-yellow clothes, and not in Republican Latin. Its…
găleată
It is inherited from Late Latin galleta (“bucket”), a Late Latin word recorded in a glossary. Wiktionary takes it as a diminutive of a Vulgar Latin *galla (“vessel”), perhaps of Gaulish origin, but…
găun
It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *cavō (“hollow, hole”), from cavus (“hollow”). The DA, after Pușcariu, gives this etymon, and the REW lists it with relatives in southern Italian dialects and…
gaură
Most sources take it as inherited from Vulgar Latin *cavula (“little hollow”), a diminutive of Latin cavus (“hollow”). Candrea and Densusianu note that the change of /k/ to /ɡ/, found in other…
geamăn
It is inherited from Latin geminus (“twin-born, twin”). Aromanian has dzeamin. Of the Romance languages, Portuguese gémeo is likewise inherited, while Italian gemino is a learned word; French jumeau…