Féminin

massa

Signification

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(Anglais)

(declension-1, feminine) mass, bulk (of material)
(declension-1, feminine) load, burden
(declension-1, feminine) dough
(declension-1, feminine) lump

Fréquence

Prononcé comme (IPA)

[ˈmas.sa]

An early borrowing from Ancient Greek μᾶζα (mâza, “bread”), possibly via Etruscan. It is uncertain whether the long /aː/ was carried over. Early Latin regularly rendered the Greek sound represented by ⟨ζ⟩ as /ss/; compare patrissō. In Imperial times, when Greek borrowings were entering Latin with ⟨z⟩, the old massa remained, never replaced by *māza.