Etymologically
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conspiratio

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 14:48. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [kõː.spiːˈraː.ti.oː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [kon.spiˈrat.t͡si.o][1]

Forms

cōnspīrātiō f (genitive cōnspīrātiōnis); third declension[1]

Etymology

It is from cōnspīrō “to breathe together, agree” with the suffix -tiō.[2][1][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLL dates it from Cicero, and the OLD's earliest citations are from Cicero, of concord and of conspiracy.[3][2] Köbler dates Cicero 81–43 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

In Columella it meant the unison of instruments, literally a breathing together.[6][7] In Cicero it meant agreement, harmony, concord, as cōnspīrātiō bonōrum omnium “the union of all good men”, and a combination for a hostile or unlawful end, a conspiracy, and its members.[2][7]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant agreement, common opinion, cooperation, conspiracy.[8] British Medieval Latin used it for a conspiracy and for champerty.[9] It survives in Italian cospirazione and French conspiration, and Anglo-French conspiracie gave English conspiracy in the mid-14th century.[1][4]

Timeline

  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of concord and of conspiracy.[2][5]
  • 1st century AD – Columella uses it of instruments in unison.[6][5]
  • mid-14th century – English conspiracy is recorded.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. Unison (of instruments); agreement, harmony.[2][6]
  2. A conspiracy; the conspirators.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  4. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  6. ^ a b c 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. ^ 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