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Latin roots - bellus and bellum

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Kingaroo | 21:09 Tue 24th Jul 2007 | Phrases & Sayings
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Many words have their roots in bellum, the Latin word for war. Many others hve their roots in bellus, beauty. Is that coincidence, like the words cat and cap sound similar for no good reason? Or would you find a common ancestor for bellum and bellus if you dug deeper? Is war beautiful?
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Name what? Are you asking for examples of English words rooted in bellum and bellus? Will that help you find a common root of the two roots?
Bellus - belle, belladonna
Bellum - antebellum, bellicose, belligerent
Latin is no different from any other language in that it has words that are very close in spelling despite having no connection as regards meaning. English is awash with them...curb, curd, cure, curl and curt, for example.
So, yes, I'd say it's coincidence.
Belladonna comes fae the Italian "bella donna" so I'd not say that was a good example. Bat, bap, mat, map, rat, rap, sat, sap, tat, tap all sound similar but they have no common derivation.

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