German language

Cognates with English

There are many German words that are cognate to English words. Most of them are easily identifiable and have almost the same meaning.

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When these cognates have slightly different consonants, this is often due to the High German consonant shift.

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There are cognates whose meanings in either language have changed through the centuries. It is sometimes difficult for both English and German speakers to discern the relationship. On the other hand, once the definitions are made clear, then the logical relation becomes obvious, as with "Dogge" and "dog".

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German and English also share many borrowings from other languages, especially from Latin, French and Greek, but also from many other languages. Most of these word have the same meaning, while a few have subtle differences in meaning. As many of these words have been borrowed by numerous languages, not only German and English, they are called internationalisms in German linguistics.

Related Topics:
Latin - French - Greek - Internationalisms - Linguistics

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