Words English took from Spanish and French
Grade 11 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Entry
Vanilla (noun) a flavoring made from the seed pods of a tropical orchid. Origin: Spanish vainilla “little pod,” from vaina “pod, sheath” + -illa, “little.” English first recorded the word in the 1600s.
Bo quotes this entry in a report. Which sentence goes no further than the entry does?
- Vanilla is a Spanish word built from vaina “pod” and -illa “little,” and English recorded it in the 1600s.
- Spanish explorers named vanilla “little pod” because its smell is so mild compared with the pod’s size.
- English made vanilla by adding -illa to the Spanish word vaina “pod,” rather than borrowing a finished word.
- Since -illa means “little,” the entry shows that Spanish words ending in -illa name small things.
Entry
Armadillo (noun) a burrowing mammal covered in bony plates. Origin: Spanish armadillo “little armored one,” from armado “armored” + -illo, “little.” First recorded in English in the 1500s.
Luz quotes this entry in a report. Which sentence goes no further than the entry does?
- Spanish armado was cut down from armadillo after English adopted the longer word.
- The name is Spanish for “little armored one,” and English first recorded it in the 1500s.
- Spanish settlers chose the name because the animal is smaller than other armored animals.
- English took the word from Latin, and Spanish merely supplied the -illo ending.
Entry
Cavalier (adjective) casual about something serious, in a way that shows a lack of respect; (noun) a gallant gentleman, once a horseman. Origin: French cavalier “horseman,” from Italian cavaliere. Sentence: The manager’s cavalier reply to the safety complaint left the crew furious.
Pia reads the sentence in the entry. Which meaning of “cavalier” fits it?
- casually dismissive of a serious matter
- strict and orderly, like the soldiers in a cavalry unit
- furious, because the crew in the sentence felt furious
- gallant and courteous, like a gentleman from an old story
Entry
Cache (noun) a hidden store of supplies. Origin: French cache “hiding place,” from cacher “to hide.” Sentence: The map app loaded slowly until it had built a cache of the routes the hikers used most.
Jun reads the sentence in the entry. Which meaning of “cache” fits it?
- a small supply of money that is set aside for emergencies and trips
- a store of recently used data, kept close at hand for fast reuse
- a hand-drawn map showing which routes the hikers use the most
- a hidden store of data that the app keeps secret from its users
Entry
Rapport (noun) a relationship of mutual understanding and trust. Origin: French rapport “a bringing back, a report,” from rapporter “to bring back.” Sentence: Within a month the new coach had built a rapport with a team that had distrusted every adult.
Esme reads the sentence in the entry. Which meaning of “rapport” fits it?
- a written report on how well the team was playing
- a bringing back of the team’s old equipment and records
- a warning that the team has long distrusted adults
- a relationship of trust and easy understanding
Entry
Vigilante (noun) a self-appointed watcher who enforces rules without legal authority. Origin: Spanish vigilante “watchful,” from Latin vigilans. Sentence: A few vigilantes began patrolling the closed rail yard to stop the dumping, though the police had asked them to stay away.
Milo reads the sentence in the entry. Which meaning of “vigilante” fits it?
- a person who dumps trash in a closed rail yard
- a volunteer who has been sworn in to help the police
- a self-appointed enforcer who has no legal authority
- a careful guard who watches over a place for its owner
Entry
Alcove (noun) a small recess in a wall, or a nook off a larger room. Origin: French alcôve, from Spanish alcoba, from Arabic al-qubba “the vault.”
Zee traces alcove. Which account of its path matches the entry?
- English alcove → French alcôve → Spanish alcoba → Arabic al-qubba
- Arabic al-qubba → French alcôve → English alcove
- Latin alcova → Spanish alcoba → French alcôve → English alcove
- Arabic al-qubba → Spanish alcoba → French alcôve → English alcove
Entry
Magazine (noun) 1. a storehouse. 2. a periodical of articles and pictures, so called as a storehouse of information. Origin: French magasin “storehouse,” from Italian magazzino, from Arabic makhāzin “storehouses.”
Ari traces magazine. Which account of its path matches the entry?
- French magasin → Italian magazzino → Arabic makhāzin → English magazine
- Arabic makhāzin → French magasin → English magazine
- Greek magazin → Italian magazzino → French magasin → English magazine
- Arabic makhāzin → Italian magazzino → French magasin → English magazine
Entry
Canoe (noun) a light, narrow boat moved by paddles. Origin: Spanish canoa, from a language of the Caribbean. English first recorded the word in the 1500s.
Tala asks what the entry names as the first source of canoe. Which answer is right?
- Latin, as with many Spanish words
- a language of the Caribbean, named in the entry
- English, since the entry gives the 1500s date for it
- Spanish, the language English borrowed it from
Entry
Potato (noun) a starchy underground stem eaten cooked. Origin: Spanish patata, a changed form of batata, a word from Taino, a language of the Caribbean, for the sweet potato. English first recorded the word in the 1500s.
Ren asks which language English borrowed potato from directly. Which answer matches the entry?
- Quechua, the language of the Andes, where potatoes were grown
- Portuguese, since many early plant names reached English that way
- Taino, the language of the original word batata
- Spanish, which had changed the Taino word batata
