English vs Spanish: Short Words
What are the real English words? The short words!
In order to be able to answer this question more properly we must remember the fact that before the Roman invasion in 43 B.C. the language spoken in Britain was a bit simplistic and its words were mostly either one-syllable or two-syllable words. Longer words were the result of the combinations of those short terms as it is the case of AFTER and NOON that combined to form the word AFTERNOON.
Once the Roman invasion took place (the first of many) words of a greater complexity, which were also longer, began appearing and increased the number of words considerably. Later on when the Normans invaded the British Isles in 1066 A.D. they left even more substantial changes in the language, an influence that would perhaps touch us all from then on.
Look at the following chart to understand this better:
True English Spanish Translation
Door Puerta
Fun Diversión
Jaw Mandíbula
Leg Pierna
Log Bitácora
Sin Pecado
Tar Alquitrán
So if you ever wondered where those short words in English come from and why they are so different from their Spanish translations the answer is that they are the remnants of the original English language which used one syllable or two-syllable terms mostly. This also explains why longer words are similar in spelling to their Spanish translations and hence why those are easier for us to learn.
True English Spanish Translation
Complete Completo
Difference Diferencia
Interesting Interesante
Javelin Jabalina
Labyrinth Laberinto
Method Método
Sincerity Sinceridad
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