Etymologically
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carpo

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈkar.poː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈkar.po][1]

Forms

carpō (present infinitive carpere, perfect active carpsī, supine carptum); third conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *karpō, from Proto-Indo-European *kerp- (“to pluck, cut”).[1] Cognate with Old Church Slavonic чрѣти (črěti, “to draw, scoop”).[1] The OLD compares Ancient Greek καρπός (karpós, “fruit”), Sanskrit कृपाण (kṛpāṇa, “sword”) and English harvest.[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Cato, of plucking fruit.[2] Köbler dates Cato 234–149 BC.[4]

Semantic evolution

It meant to pluck, gather fruit or flowers, as in Cato and Virgil's grapes picked from the vine, and in Cicero of cattle to graze.[2][5] Figuratively, as in Horace's carpe diem, it meant to seize what is fleeting, to snatch sleep or kisses, and in Virgil carpere aurās to live.[2][6] In Catullus it meant to card wool, in Terence to pick out, and in Ovid to tear to pieces, to erode, and of cares to consume.[2] From Virgil it meant to press on along a road, iter carpere.[2] In Caesar it meant to harry with sniping attacks, and in Cicero to carp at, criticize.[2]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to seize, pluck.[7] It survives in Italian carpire and Spanish carpir.[1] Medieval Latin or Old Italian carpita “woollen cloth”, probably from it, gave English carpet.[8]

Timeline

  • 234–149 BC – Cato uses it of plucking fruit.[2][4]
  • c. 50 BC – Caesar uses it of harrying.[2][4]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of criticizing.[2][4]
  • 65–8 BC – Horace writes carpe diem.[2][4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To pluck, gather; to graze.[2]
  2. To seize, snatch, carpe diem, seize the day.[2]
  3. To card (wool).[2]
  4. To pick out.[2]
  5. To pull off; to tear to pieces; to erode; to consume.[2]
  6. To press on along (a road).[2]
  7. To harry; to carp at, criticize.[2]

Word family

  • carptim
  • carptor
  • carptūra
  • concerpō
  • dēcerpō
  • discerpō
  • excerpō
  • praecerpō
  • māscarpiō
  • omnicarpus
  • carptus
  • dēcermina
  • dēcerptor
  • discerptiō
  • excerptiō
  • excerptum
  • excerptus
  • praecerptus
  • scirpus
  • English carpet
  • English excerpt

References

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