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Cognates

Cognates are words that have a common origin. The term may refer to the words of one language, or (most commonly) words in different languages.

For example, the words night (in French), night (in English), Nacht (German) are related, because from the same root Indo-European.

Similarly, the words father and father are related, because both originate from Latin pater.

False friends

Sometimes two words from the same root evolve into different meanings, they become so-called false friends. For example, French and English day journey from both the Old French of the eleventh century , meaning "travel or work for a day" , . Since then, the term has kept the idea of travel, and the French retained the temporal sense that we know.

References

  1. Or, presumably, more generally, "what can be done in one day. "The word would have been built by the same method as batch, the amount that can be baked in an oven, or blocked, the amount that fits in your mouth. "
  2. Etymology of day on the site of CNRTL
  3. (en) Journey to the Online Etymology Dictionary

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