cognate

Definitions

co- (together) + gn (a worn-down form of gen-, 'born') + -ate = 'born together,' i.e. sharing a common birth or origin. English father and German Vater are cognates — born from the same ancestral word. The gn- spelling is the same reduced variant seen in benign and malign.

Why It Means This

cognate shows off the gn- face of this root (also in benign, malign, pregnant). 'Co-born' is a perfect metaphor for linguistic relatives: two words that came from the same parent word, like siblings. Linguists hunt cognates to reconstruct lost ancestor languages.

Common Collocations

• 1.cognate words同源词
• 2.cognate languages同源语言
• 3.false cognate假同源词（伪友）

Example Sentences

• 1.

  The English 'night' and German 'Nacht' are cognates.

• 2.

  Spanish learners can lean on cognates like 'animal' and 'hospital'.

• 3.

  The two languages share many cognate words.