Etymologically
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adiuto

Etymology and origin of the Latin word adiuto

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
Plautus
Ultimate origin
Proto-Indo-European (*h₁yewH-)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [adˈjuː.toː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [adˈjuː.to][1]

Forms

adiūtō (present infinitive adiūtāre, perfect active adiūtāvī, supine adiūtātum); first conjugation[1] Also deponent adiūtor; an inscription has adiovta, and a papyrus aiutare.[2]

Etymology

It is the frequentative of adiuvō “to help”, with -tō, from ad- and iuvō.[2][1] De Vaan traces ⟨iuvō⟩ to Proto-Indo-European *h₁i-h₁ewH- (“to help”), cognate with Sanskrit अवति (ávati, “helps”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Lewis & Short and Gaffiot cite Plautus and Terence.[4][5] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[6]

Semantic evolution

It meant to help, assist, relieve someone, as in Plautus' Casina and Terence, and Lewis & Short note that it is ante-classical and late.[2][4][5]

It is the source of Italian aiutare, French aider, Spanish ayudar, Portuguese ajudar and Romanian ajuta.[1] English aid (early 15th century) comes through Old French from Late Latin adiūta, and adjutant from its present participle.[7]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it.[5][6]
  • 190–159 BC – Terence uses it.[5][6]
  • early 15th century – English aid is recorded.[7]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To help, assist.[2][4]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  4. ^ a b c Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  6. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  7. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
Cite this entry

“Adiuto.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/adiuto. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·