arceo

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [ˈar.ke.oː]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈar.t͡ʃe.o]^[1]

Forms

arceō (present infinitive arcēre, perfect active arcuī, supine arcitum); second conjugation^[1] Priscian gives a supine arcitum.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *ark-eje/o- (“to contain, keep out”), inherited from Proto-Indo-European *h₂(o)rḱ-eye/o- (“to hold”), a causative, and Wiktionary gives the root as ⟨*h₂erk-⟩ “to protect”.^[3][1] Cognates include Oscan tríbarakavúm (“to build”), Ancient Greek ἀρκέω (arkéō, “to ward off, suffice”) and Old Armenian արգել (argel, “obstacle”), and the OLD and TLL compare arca and arx.^[3][1][4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Among the OLD's earliest citations are Ennius, Pacuvius and Accius.^[4] Köbler dates Ennius 204–169 BC.^[6]

Semantic evolution

It meant to keep close, contain, hold in, as of rivers in Cicero, and figuratively to control; to keep away, repulse, prevent from approaching; to keep apart, as of two camps separated by a river in Livy; to protect, defend from, as in Virgil; to prevent from an action; and to ward off, dispel, as of thirst or sleep in Seneca.^[4][7]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to prevent, enclose, shut in.^[8] Its compounds include coerceō “to restrain” and exerceō “to keep busy, exercise”, from which exercitus “army” comes.^[3]

Timeline

• 204–169 BC – Ennius uses it.^[4][6]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of containing.^[4][6]
• 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it of protecting.^[4][6]

Meanings

Verb

1. To keep close, contain; to control.^[4]
2. To keep away, repulse.^[4]
3. To keep apart, separate.^[4]
4. To protect, defend.^[4]
5. To prevent, hinder; to ward off.^[4]

Word family

• abarceō
• arcifinius
• coërceō
• exerceō
• aberceō
• porceō

Related words

• arca
• arcānus
• arx
• parcō

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
3. ^ a b c 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 d e f g h i j k Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
7. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
8. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson