perla

See also: Perla, pèrla, perlă, perła, and perłą

Asturian

Alternative forms

• perlla

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

perla f (plural perles)

1. pearl (rounded shelly concretion produced by certain mollusks)

Catalan

Etymology

Unknown, probably based on Vulgar Latin *pernula, diminutive of Latin perna, a kind of oyster. Cognate with Italian perla, French perle and Spanish perla.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈpɛr.lə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈpɛɾ.la]

• Audio (Catalonia):

  (file)

Noun

perla f (plural perles)

1. pearl
2. (heraldry) pall

Derived terms

• emperlar
• perla barroca
• perla cultivada
• perlat
• perlejar
• perler
• perlí
• pesca de perles

Related terms

• perlé

Further reading

• “perla”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007

Chavacano

Etymology

Inherited from Spanish perla (“pearl”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpeɾla/, [ˈpeɾ.la]
• Hyphenation: per‧la

Noun

perla

1. alternative form of perlas

Czech

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈpɛrla]

Noun

perla f (relational adjective perlový)

1. pearl (rounded shelly concretion produced by certain mollusks)

Declension

Declension of perla (hard feminine reducible)

	singular	plural
nominative	perla	perly
genitive	perly	perel
dative	perle	perlám
accusative	perlu	perly
vocative	perlo	perly
locative	perle	perlách
instrumental	perlou	perlami

Related terms

• perleť
• perlit

Further reading

• “perla”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “perla”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
• “perla”, in Internetová jazyková příručka (in Czech), 2008–2025

Anagrams

• lepra
• raple

Faroese

Etymology

From Latin perla.

Noun

perla f (genitive singular perlu, plural perlur)

1. pearl (rounded shelly concretion produced by certain mollusks)

Declension

f1	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	perla	perlan	perlur	perlurnar
accusative	perlu	perluna	perlur	perlurnar
dative	perlu	perluni	perlum	perlunum
genitive	perlu	perlunnar	perla	perlanna

French

Pronunciation

• Audio (France (Lyon)):

  (file)

• Homophones: perlas, perlât

Verb

perla

1. third-person singular past historic of perler

Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse perla, a borrowing from Middle Low German perle, from Old Saxon perula, from Medieval Latin perla.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpʰɛrtla/
• Rhymes: -ɛrtla

Noun

perla f (genitive singular perlu, nominative plural perlur)

1. pearl

Declension

Declension of perla (feminine)

	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	perla	perlan	perlur	perlurnar
accusative	perlu	perluna	perlur	perlurnar
dative	perlu	perlunni	perlum	perlunum
genitive	perlu	perlunnar	perla, perlna	perlanna, perlnanna

Derived terms

• perluvinir

See also

• gull af manni

Interlingua

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

perla (plural perlas)

1. pearl

Italian

Italian Wikipedia has an article on:

perla

Wikipedia ^it

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɛr.la/
• Rhymes: -ɛrla
• Hyphenation: pèr‧la

Etymology 1

Uncertain. See pearl.

Noun

perla f (plural perle)

1. (also figurative) pearl
2. pill
3. mistake

Adjective

perla (invariable)

1. (relational) pearl

Derived terms

• imperlare
• madreperla
• perlaceo
• perlagione
• perlato
• perlifero
• perlina
• perlite

See also

• pastiglia
• pillola
• castroneria
• sfondone

Etymology 2

Borrowed from French perle, the name given by Jean Jannon to the type used in his miniature editions of Vergil, Horace, & the New Testament in the 1620s, which were the smallest printed works to his time.

Noun

perla f (invariable)

1. (printing, dated) a small size of type, standardized as 4 point

Anagrams

• lepra

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈpɛr.ɫa]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈpɛr.la]

Noun

perla f (genitive perlae); first declension

1. alternative form of perula
   • 1272, an unknown source in The Natural History of Precious Stones and of the Precious Metals (1867), viii, page 269:

     Una Perla ad modum camahuti.

     A pearl in the manner of a cameo.

Declension

First-declension noun.

	singular	plural
nominative	perla	perlae
genitive	perlae	perlārum
dative	perlae	perlīs
accusative	perlam	perlās
ablative	perlā	perlīs
vocative	perla	perlae

Descendants

• → Translingual: Perla

References

• Jan Frederik Niermeyer, Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus : Lexique Latin Médiéval–Français/Anglais : A Medieval Latin–French/English Dictionary, fascicle I (1976), page 789/1, “perla”

Norwegian Bokmål

Alternative forms

• perlen

Noun

perla m or f

1. definite feminine singular of perle

Norwegian Nynorsk

Noun

perla f

1. definite singular of perle

Portuguese

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈpɛʁ.lɐ/ [ˈpɛɦ.lɐ]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈpɛʁ.lɐ/ [ˈpɛɦ.lɐ]
  • (São Paulo) IPA^(key): /ˈpɛɾ.lɐ/
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /ˈpɛʁ.lɐ/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈpɛɻ.la/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈpɛɾ.lɐ/

• Hyphenation: per‧la

Noun

perla f (plural perlas)

1. (heraldry) pall

Further reading

• “perla”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2025
• “perla”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French perler.

Verb

a perla (third-person singular present perlează, past participle perlat) 1st conjugation

1. to bead

Conjugation

    conjugation of perla (first conjugation, -ez- infix)

infinitive			a perla
gerund			perlând
past participle			perlat
number		singular			plural
person		1st person	2nd person	3rd person	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
indicative		eu	tu	el/ea	noi	voi	ei/ele
	present	perlez	perlezi	perlează	perlăm	perlați	perlează
	imperfect	perlam	perlai	perla	perlam	perlați	perlau
	simple perfect	perlai	perlași	perlă	perlarăm	perlarăți	perlară
	pluperfect	perlasem	perlaseși	perlase	perlaserăm	perlaserăți	perlaseră
subjunctive		eu	tu	el/ea	noi	voi	ei/ele
	present	să perlez	să perlezi	să perleze	să perlăm	să perlați	să perleze
imperative		—	tu	—	—	voi	—
	affirmative		perlează			perlați
	negative		nu perla			nu perlați

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

Borrowed from German Perle.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pêːrla/
• Hyphenation: per‧la

Noun

pȇrla f (Cyrillic spelling пе̑рла)

1. pearl
2. bead

Declension

Declension of perla

	singular	plural
nominative	perla	perle
genitive	perle	perla / perli
dative	perli	perlama
accusative	perlu	perle
vocative	perlo	perle
locative	perli	perlama
instrumental	perlom	perlama

Slovak

Etymology

Derived from Latin perla.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɛrɫa/

Noun

perla f (genitive singular perly, nominative plural perly, genitive plural perál, periel, declension pattern of žena)

1. pearl (rounded shelly concretion produced by certain mollusks)

Declension

Declension of perla

	singular	plural
nominative	perla	perly
genitive	perly	perál, periel
dative	perle	perlám
accusative	perlu	perly
locative	perle	perlách
instrumental	perlou	perlami

Derived terms

• perlový
• perlička

References

• “perla”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2003–2025

Spanish

Spanish Wikipedia has an article on:

perla

Wikipedia ^es

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpeɾla/ [ˈpeɾ.la]

• Audio (Colombia):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɾla
• Syllabification: per‧la

Etymology 1

Unknown, but cognate with Italian perla, French perle and Portuguese pérola. See pearl. The usual Latin word for a pearl was margarīta.

Noun

perla f (plural perlas)

1. pearl
2. bead
3. (heraldry) pall

Derived terms

• aperlado
• concha de perla
• de perlas
• hilo de perlas
• madreperla
• mijo perla
• perlado
• perlífero

Descendants

• Chavacano: perla, perlas
• → Basque: perla
• → Ilocano: perlas

Etymology 2

Borrowed from French perle, the name given by Jean Jannon to the type used in his miniature editions of Vergil, Horace, & the New Testament in the 1620s, which were the smallest printed works to his time.

Noun

perla f (uncountable)

1. (printing, dated) a small size of type, standardized as 4 or 5 point

   Synonym: parisienne

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

perla

1. inflection of perlar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Further reading

• “perla”, 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

Anagrams

• pelar, rapel