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concutio

Etymology and origin of the Latin word concutio

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Confidence
Probable
Formation
Compound
First attested
Ennius
Ultimate origin
Latin (quatiō)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [kɔŋˈkʊ.ti.oː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [koŋˈkut.t͡si.o][1]

Forms

concutiō (present infinitive concutere, perfect active concussī, supine concussum); third (-iō variant) conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is from con- and quatiō “to shake”, with the vowel weakened to /u/.[2][1][3] De Vaan reconstructs Proto-Italic ⟨*kʷat-i-⟩ and compares Old High German scutten (“to shake”), but suggests the root may be of non-Indo-European origin.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Ennius, of shaking.[2] Köbler dates Ennius 204–169 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant to shake, agitate, brandish, as in Ennius, and Ovid has caput concutere and Virgil shaking an oak.[2][6] In Seneca it meant to strike together, in Lucretius to strike so as to weaken, and in Cicero to harass, upset, and to rouse to action or emotion.[2]

Its noun concussiō gave English concussion, and its participle gave English concuss in the 1590s, “to shake violently”.[7]

Timeline

  • 204–169 BC – Ennius uses it.[2][5]
  • 96–55 BC – Lucretius uses it of damaging blows.[2][5]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of harassing.[2][5]
  • 1590s – English concuss is recorded.[7]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To shake, agitate; to brandish.[2]
  2. To strike together.[2]
  3. To shatter, weaken.[2]
  4. To harass, upset.[2]
  5. To rouse, excite.[2]

Word family

  • concussibilis
  • concussiō
  • concussor
  • concussura
  • concussus
  • inconcussus
  • quatiō
  • English concussion
  • English concuss

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  5. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  6. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  7. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
Cite this entry

“Concutio.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/concutio. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·