Germanic vs. Romance
Words
Part I
“The vocabulary of Modern English is
approximately a quarter Germanic (Old
English, Scandinavian, Dutch, German) and
two-thirds Italic or Romance (especially Latin,
French, Spanish, Italian), with copious and
increasing importations from Greek in
science and technology and with
considerable borrowings from more than 300
other languages” (Britannica).
Two Words
happiness
joy
wild
savage
former
previous
gift
present
know
recognize
lawful
legal
tease
irritate
shop
store
king
president
belittle
degrade
many
multiple
thought
idea
god
deity
anger
rage
chagrin
displeasure
even
level
dye
color
wage
salary
weird
strange
chic
elegant
speech
language
kind
type
meaningful
important
brand
genre
threat
danger
old
ancient
woods
forest
blossom
flower
ache
pain
eat
consume
time
hour
whole
total
hill
mountain
Part II
French (Romance)
English (Germanic)
“hard” words
“big” words
“fancy” words
“easy” words
“small” words
“baby” words
Register
good
beneficial
road
avenue
youthful
juvenile
end
finish
quick
rapid
gather
assemble
late
tardy
new
modern
mean
signify
see
perceive
lean back
recline
give
provide
leader
captain
motherhood
maternity
shape
form
eyesight
vision
work
labor
teach
educate
get (here / to)
arrive
friendly
amicable
begin
commence
nightly
nocturnal
guess
estimate
blessing
benefit
start
initiate
tell
narrate
build
construct
freedom
liberty
let go
relinquish
pick
select
buy
purchase
line
sequence
mistake
error
behavior
conduct
cold
frigid
answer
response
bug
insect
belly
abdomen
ask
inquire
asleep
dormant
snake
serpent
Part III
Specificity
bubble
boil
sheep
mutton
eastern
oriental
warning
alert
writing
script
wait
expect
body
corpse
oven
furnace
height
altitude
belief
creed
deer
venison
pig
pork
alive
animated
earnest
sober
cow
beef
wedding
marriage
birthday
anniversary
flag
signal
touch
sense
Part IV
Extra
go on
proceed
feeling
sentiment
wash
launder
before
prior
way
manner
aware
cognizant
fatherly
paternal
job
profession
seem
appear
great
grand
understand
comprehend
wish
desire
cat
feline
watch
observe
womanly
feminine
dog
canine
help
assist
meet
encounter
baby
infant
talk
converse
deadly
fatal
seller
vendor
stay
remain
big
large
yearly
annual
holiday
vacation