Etymologically
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bi-

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈbɪ][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈbiː][1]

Forms

bi-[1] The older form dvi- survives in dvidēns “with two teeth” in the epitome of Festus.[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *dwi- (“two”),[2][1] from Proto-Indo-European *du̯i- (“two”), the form of the numeral used as the first member of a compound.[2][1] Where the ⟨i⟩ came from in Proto-Indo-European is unclear: it may be a compounding suffix, or it was added on the model of *tri- (“three”).[2][1]

Cognate with Sanskrit द्वि- (dvi-), Avestan bi-, Ancient Greek δι- (di-), Lithuanian dvi-, Old English twi- and Old High German zwi-.[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The earliest compound with it is bipēs “two-footed”, in Naevius.[2][5]

Semantic evolution

Some words with it are no longer transparent: bīgae “a pair of horses” goes back to *dwi-jug-ā- “having two yokes”, and bīmus “two years old” to *dwi-χimo- “having two winters”.[2] The long ⟨ī⟩ of bīduum “a period of two days” is put down to the analogy of trīduum.[2]

Meanings

Prefix

  1. Having two, consisting of two (bipēs, bicornis).[4][1]
  2. Measuring two units, lasting two (biennium).[4]
  3. Occurring twice.[1]

Word family

Usage notes

Forms with di- for “two” (diennium, dīmus) are found only in glossaries and imitate Greek.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  3. ^ Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  4. ^ a b c Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de