platinum

Where does the word "platinum" come from? It comes from Spanish platina, and was adopted directly into English (1812).

Platinum’s story begins in Spanish: platina meant “little silver.” Literally little silver, a diminutive of plata (silver), describing the pale metal. It reached English by 1812 as platinum. Settled as the English name for the precious silvery-white metal. Today, platinum means a dense, precious silvery-white metallic element.

1. Stage 1 · Spanish · 1500s platina "little silver", literally little silver, a diminutive of plata (silver), describing the pale metal.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1812 platinum "a dense, precious silvery-white metal", settled as the English name for the precious silvery-white metal.