Etymologically
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cesso

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈkɛs.soː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈt͡ʃɛs.so][1]

Forms

cessō (present infinitive cessāre, perfect active cessāvī, supine cessātum); first conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is a frequentative of cēdō “to go, withdraw, yield”, with the suffix -tō: literally to keep holding back.[2][1][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's first citations are from Plautus and Ennius, of delaying and hesitating.[2] Köbler dates Ennius 204–169 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant to hold back, delay, dally, as Plautus' quid cessās? “why are you dawdling?”, and to hesitate to do something, as in Ennius.[2][6] It meant to desist, rest from an activity, as in Terence, of conditions to cease, and of things to stop, give out, as in Virgil.[2] It meant to be remiss, in law to default or fail to appear, to be idle, rest, as in Cato, of things to lie unused, of land to lie fallow, as in Virgil, to be at rest, and of rules to be inoperative.[2]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to cease, stop, delay, loiter.[7] It survives in French cesser, Italian cessare and Spanish cesar.[1] Through Old French cesser it is the source of English cease about 1300.[4]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of dawdling.[2][6][5]
  • 204–169 BC – Ennius uses it of hesitating.[2][5]
  • 190–159 BC – Terence uses it of desisting.[2][5]
  • c. 1300 – English cease is recorded.[4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To delay, hesitate, dally.[2]
  2. To desist, rest; to cease.[2]
  3. To be remiss, (law) to default.[2]
  4. To be idle, (of land) to lie fallow.[2]
  5. To be at rest; to be inoperative.[2]

Word family

  • cessātiō
  • cessātor
  • cessātrīx
  • concessō

References

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