English 'forte' represents two independent borrowings — from French for 'strong point' and from Italian for 'play loudly' — both tracing to Latin 'fortis' (strong), from PIE *bʰerǵʰ- (high), the same root that through Germanic gave English 'borough' and German 'Berg.'
A person's strong point or special talent; in music, a direction to play loudly.
Two distinct borrowings merged in English. The 'strong point' sense comes from French 'fort' (strong), the feminine form 'forte' being used as a noun meaning 'strong point,' from Latin 'fortis' (strong, powerful). The musical sense comes from Italian 'forte' (loud, strong), also from Latin 'fortis.' The Latin adjective derives from PIE
The pronunciation of 'forte' meaning 'strong point' is a perennial English debate. Since it comes from French, the historically correct pronunciation is one syllable: /fɔːɹt/. The two-syllable pronunciation /ˈfɔːɹteɪ/ comes from confusion with the Italian musical term. Most English speakers now say /ˈfɔːɹteɪ/ for both senses, and prescriptive insistence on the French pronunciation has become a shibboleth
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