invierno
ES [imˈbjeɾno] · Spanish for “winter” · one letter from infierno (“hell”)
It was actually Duolingo who first confused me with this. siempre esquío en invierno. What? How does one ski while being engulfed in flames? Of course I encountered this before learning that there is a 1:1 equivalent that actually carries the expected meaning - infierno.
Invierno is the Spanish word for winter. The trouble is that it sits one letter away from infierno - hell - and both of them look and sound like English inferno. Additionally in German, the letter v in the alphabet is pronounced as fau, thus it appeared completely valid.
Two Spanish words a single consonant apart - invierno (winter) and infierno (hell) - and the resemblance is a trap. Invierno comes from Latin hibernum, “wintry,” the same root that gives English hibernate. Infierno comes from Latin infernum, “the world below,” the root behind English inferno and Italian inferno. So the true cognate bridge for invierno is hibernate, not inferno: the fiery-looking word is the false friend, and the dull-looking one is the real relative.