Cognate Word (Noun)
Meaning
A word is cognate with another if both derive from the same word in an ancestral language.
Classification
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents.
Examples
- English "father" and German "vater" are cognate words that derive from the same word in Proto-Germanic.
- Spanish "perro" and Italian "cane" are not exactly cognate words but share a common Latin ancestor.
- Many languages have cognate words for numbers and familial relationships.
- English "hotel" is not cognate with Spanish "otel", because "otel" comes from French and has undergone sound changes in French that distinguish it from its cognate English "hotel".
- Latin and Sanskrit share several cognate words for abstract concepts.