auditus

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [au̯ˈdiː.tʊs]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [au̯ˈdiː.tus]^[1]

Forms

audītus m (genitive audītūs); fourth declension^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin audiō (“to hear”) + -tus, a verbal noun of the fourth declension.^[2][1] De Vaan traces ⟨audiō⟩ to Proto-Italic *awizdje/o- (“to hear”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew-is (“clearly”) and Proto-Indo-European *dʰh₁-ye/o- (“to render”).^[3] Isidore explains it as named because it “drinks in” voices (“quod vōcēs auriat”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Köbler's earliest source is Plautus, and the OLD's earliest citations of the sense of hearing are from Varro.^[5][2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC and Varro 116–27 BC.^[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant the sense or act of hearing, as in Varro and Cicero; the act of hearing about something, hearsay, as in Tacitus and Pliny; and in Apuleius a sound.^[2][6][7]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant a hearing.^[8] Medieval Latin used it for the preaching of the Gospel and for attendance at lectures, and British Medieval Latin for listening, attention, earshot, and the ear.^[9][10] Its use for a hearing of accounts gave English audit in the early 15th century.^[11]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it.^[5]
• 116–27 BC – Varro uses it of the sense of hearing.^[2][5]
• c. 125–175 AD – Apuleius uses it of a sound.^[2][5]
• early 15th century – English audit is recorded.^[11]

Meanings

Noun

1. The sense or act of hearing.^[2]
2. Hearing about something, hearsay.^[2]
3. A sound.^[2]
4. (Medieval Latin) Preaching; attendance at lectures.^[9]

Related words

• audiēns
• audientia
• audiō
• audītiō
• audītor
• audītōriālis
• audītōrium
• audītōrius
• English audit

Usage notes

audītus is also the perfect participle of audiō, sometimes used as an adjective meaning “known”, as in Cicero.^[7][6]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h 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. ^ Isidore of Seville, Etymologiarum sive Originum libri XX, ed. W. M. Lindsay (Oxford, 1911).
5. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b 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
9. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
10. ^ Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press
11. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com