Everyday LifeGreek → English
Rita
/ˈriːtə/proper noun
A given name, short for Margarita or Margaret.
The Greek roots
μαργαρίτης
margarítēs
pearl
Literally: “pearl”
Follow a root:μαργαρίτης2 words
The story of the word
Margarita is the Greek word for pearl, and Greek almost certainly borrowed it from an eastern source that also lies behind Sanskrit mañjarī, so the Greek stage is a way station rather than the origin. Rita of Cascia, the 15th-century Italian saint, carried the clipped form into wide use. The pearl survives elsewhere too: margarine got its name from margaric acid, which Chevreul named for its pearly sheen.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → Italian → English
Same family
Margaretmargueritemargarinemargarita
In a sentence
Rita signs her cards with the full Margarita only for her mother.