facade

Where does the word "facade" come from? It comes from Italian facciata, passing through French before entering English (1600s-1700s).

Facade’s story begins in Italian: facciata meant “the face of a building.” From "faccia" (face), referring to a building's front. By 1600s, the word had taken hold in French as façade. Adopted for the front face of a building. It reached English by 1600s-1700s as facade. From Italian 'faccia', face. Today, facade means the front of a building, or a deceptive outward appearance.

1. Stage 1 · Italian · medieval facciata "the face of a building", from "faccia" (face), referring to a building's front.
2. Stage 2 · French · 1600s façade "the front of a building", adopted for the front face of a building.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1600s-1700s facade "the front of a building, or a deceptive outward appearance", from Italian 'faccia', face.