catafalco

English

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *ḱe?

Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm

Proto-Indo-European *ḱm̥-th₂der.?

Proto-Hellenic *kətá

Ancient Greek κᾰτᾰ́ (kătắ)

Etruscan 𐌚𐌀𐌋𐌀 (fala)bor.

Latin fala

Vulgar Latin [Term?]?

Italian catafalcobor.

English catafalco

Borrowed from Italian catafalco.

Pronunciation

• enPR: kă'təfălʹkō
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌkætəˈfælkəʊ/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˌkætəˈfælkoʊ/

Noun

catafalco (plural catafalcoes)

1. Synonym of catafalque.

Galician

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian catafalco.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kataˈfalko/ [kɑ.t̪aˈfɑɫ.kʊ]
• Rhymes: -alko
• Hyphenation: ca‧ta‧fal‧co

Noun

catafalco m (plural catafalcos)

1. catafalque, catafalco

Further reading

• “catafalco”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2026
• “catafalco”, in Dicionário Estraviz de galego (in Galician), 2014–2026

Italian

Etymology

Perhaps from Vulgar Latin *catafalicum, derived from Ancient Greek κατά (katá, “down”) + Latin fala (“scaffolding, wooden siege tower”). Also influenced scaffold.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ka.taˈfal.ko/
• Rhymes: -alko
• Hyphenation: ca‧ta‧fàl‧co

Noun

catafalco m (plural catafalchi)

1. catafalque (platform used to display or convey a coffin)
2. hearse, bier
3. (figurative, humorous) something excessively voluminous or cumbersome
4. stage (elevated platform for performances)

Descendants

• → English: catafalco
• → French: catafalque
  • → English: catafalque
• → Galician: catafalco
• → Portuguese: catafalco
• → Spanish: catafalco

Further reading

• catafalco in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian catafalco.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ka.taˈfaw.ku/ [ka.taˈfaʊ̯.ku]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ka.taˈfaw.ku/ [ka.taˈfaʊ̯.ku]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ka.taˈfaw.ko/ [ka.taˈfaʊ̯.ko]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /kɐ.tɐˈfal.ku/ [kɐ.tɐˈfaɫ.ku]

• Rhymes: (Portugal) -alku, (Brazil) -awku
• Hyphenation: ca‧ta‧fal‧co

Noun

catafalco m (plural catafalcos)

1. catafalque, catafalco

   Synonym: essa

Further reading

• “catafalco”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “catafalco”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian catafalco.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kataˈfalko/ [ka.t̪aˈfal.ko]
• Rhymes: -alko
• Syllabification: ca‧ta‧fal‧co

Noun

catafalco m (plural catafalcos)

1. catafalque, catafalco

Further reading

• “catafalco”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025