XPost: rec.puzzles, alt.usage.english   
   From: HenHanna@NewsGrouper   
      
   (Almost) Every time I hear  ---  Para español, oprima dos.   
   >   
   > Never saw that.   
   >   
   > >     i'm reminded that in Spanish,  Press and Oppress  are the same verb.   
   >   
   > Don't think so. There's also apretar, and (more appropriate here) presionar.   
      
      
   in Spanish,  Press and Oppress  are the same verb.   
            -------- I just checked this with my AI (tutor)   
      
   >>>  If you want, I can give you a few more verbs like this where Spanish   
   keeps the physical root and English moralizes it, or show how French sits   
   awkwardly in between.   
      
         Ok!!!   
      
      
   Cool 🙂 Here are a few **clean, telling examples**—same physical root in   
   Romance, split or abstracted in English.   
      
   ### 1. **oprimir** (we did this one)   
      
   * press → oppress   
     Spanish: *one verb, one metaphor*   
     English: *mechanical vs moral*   
      
   ---   
      
   ### 2. **pesar**   
      
   From *pondus* (weight)   
      
   * **pesar 10 kilos** → to weigh 10 kilos   
   * **me pesa la culpa** → guilt weighs on me   
      
   English:   
      
   * weigh (physical)   
   * burden / weigh on (emotional, split)   
      
   Spanish keeps **weight = pressure = moral force** unified.   
      
   ---   
      
   ### 3. **cargar**   
      
   From *carrus* (cart)   
      
   * **cargar una caja** → to carry a box   
   * **cargar con una responsabilidad** → to bear responsibility   
   * **cargar contra alguien** → to charge (attack)   
      
   English fractures this into:   
      
   * carry   
   * bear   
   * charge   
      
   Spanish: still **load + force over time**.   
      
   ---   
      
   ### 4. **sufrir**   
      
   From Latin *sub-ferre* (“to carry from below”)   
      
   * **sufrir dolor** → suffer pain   
   * **sufrir injusticias** → suffer injustices   
      
   Originally: *to bear weight underneath*.   
   Spanish preserves the embodied sense; English mostly forgets it.   
      
   ---   
      
   ### 5. **aguantar**   
      
   From *aqua* → resist, endure (originally “hold against flow”)   
      
   * **aguantar el dolor** → endure pain   
   * **aguantar a alguien** → put up with someone   
      
   Still a **temporal verb**: resistance *over time*.   
      
   ---   
      
   ### Pattern you’re seeing   
      
   Romance languages often:   
      
   * keep **body → force → time → meaning** intact   
      
   English often:   
      
   * splits physical / emotional / political into different verbs   
   * cleans the metaphor away   
      
   So your two insights connect neatly:   
      
   * **verbs as duration**   
   * **meaning as pressure extended in time**   
      
   If you want next:   
      
   * one page on **why English does this historically**, or   
   * a comparison where **German goes even further than Spanish**, or   
   * how this shows up in **prepositions** (“under,” “over,”   
   “through”).   
      
   Just point.   
      
      
   ___________________________   
      
   Good catch — no, I *talked* about French sitting in between, but I didn’t   
   actually **show** it. Let’s fix that cleanly.   
      
   French often **splits a little**, but still keeps the physical metaphor closer   
   to the surface than English.   
      
   ---   
      
   ## 1. **presser / opprimer**   
      
   Same Latin root as Spanish *oprimir*.   
      
   * **presser un bouton** → press a button   
   * **opprimer un peuple** → oppress a people   
      
   Here French *does* split the verbs (like English), **but**:   
      
   * *opprimer* still literally means *press down*   
   * the metaphor is still transparent to a French ear   
      
   So: **half-split, not fully abstracted**.   
      
   ---   
      
   ## 2. **peser**   
      
   Like Spanish *pesar*.   
      
   * **peser 10 kilos** → weigh 10 kilos   
   * **ça me pèse** → it weighs on me   
   * **une atmosphère pesante** → oppressive/heavy atmosphere   
      
   English needs:   
      
   * weigh   
   * weigh on   
   * oppressive   
      
   French keeps **weight → emotional force → environment** in one family.   
      
   ---   
      
   ## 3. **porter**   
      
   This one is very telling.   
      
   * **porter un sac** → carry a bag   
   * **porter une responsabilité** → bear responsibility   
   * **porter plainte** → bring a charge   
   * **porter atteinte** → inflict harm   
      
   English splits:   
      
   * carry   
   * bear   
   * bring   
   * inflict   
      
   French keeps **carrying → enduring → imposing**, all time-extended.   
      
   ---   
      
   ## 4. **supporter**   
      
   From *sub-portare* (“carry from below”)   
      
   * **supporter un poids** → support a weight   
   * **supporter la douleur** → endure pain   
   * **je ne le supporte plus** → I can’t stand him anymore   
      
   Physical → emotional → interpersonal, same verb.   
      
   ---   
      
   ## 5. **souffrir**   
      
   Same as Spanish *sufrir*.   
      
   * **souffrir physiquement** → suffer physically   
   * **souffrir d’une injustice** → suffer from an injustice   
      
   Still explicitly **bearing something over time**.   
      
   ---   
      
   ## Why French is “in between”   
      
   * Spanish: **one verb, broad semantic field**   
   * English: **many verbs, narrow meanings**   
   * French: **families of verbs**, etymologically tight, metaphor still visible   
      
   French *lexicalizes* the metaphor more than Spanish, but **never erases it**   
   the way English often does.   
      
   So yes — French really is a middle case:   
      
   * not as unified as Spanish   
   * not as disembodied as English   
      
   If you want, we can push this one level deeper and look at **French   
   prepositions** (*sous, sur, à travers*) doing the same conceptual work with   
   time and force.   
      
      
   _________________________   
      
      
      
   Sure — **very briefly**, and you’ll see German goes even *more* physical   
   than French.   
      
   ### 1. **drücken**   
      
   * **einen Knopf drücken** → press a button   
   * **jemanden drücken** → squeeze / press someone   
   * **etwas drückt auf die Seele** → something weighs/presses on the soul   
      
   One verb: **pressure → emotional burden**.   
      
   ---   
      
   ### 2. **belasten**   
      
   From *Last* (load)   
      
   * **eine Brücke belasten** → load a bridge   
   * **jemanden belasten** → burden someone (emotionally, legally)   
      
   Still very concrete: **load over time**.   
      
   ---   
      
   ### 3. **tragen**   
      
   * **eine Tasche tragen** → carry a bag   
   * **eine Verantwortung tragen** → bear responsibility   
   * **eine Schuld tragen** → bear guilt   
      
   English splits; German doesn’t.   
      
   ---   
      
   ### 4. **leiden**   
      
   * **an Schmerzen leiden** → suffer pain   
   * **unter Unterdrückung leiden** → suffer under oppression   
      
   Note **unter** (“under”) — the metaphor is explicit.   
      
   ---   
      
   ### 5. **unterdrücken**   
      
   Literally: **under + press**   
      
   * **eine Taste unterdrücken** → suppress a key   
   * **ein Volk unterdrücken** → oppress a people   
      
   German makes the metaphor almost embarrassingly clear.   
      
   **Bottom line:** German loves to keep meaning **spatial, bodily, and extended   
   in time** — very little abstraction, lots of pressure, weight, and   
   “under-ness.”   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)