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corrumpo

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Pronunciation

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

Forms

corrumpō (present infinitive corrumpere, perfect active corrūpī, supine corruptum); third conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is from con- and rumpō “to break”: to break to pieces.[2][1][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's first citations are from Plautus, of spoiling and destroying.[2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[4]

Semantic evolution

It meant to spoil, damage, destroy, as Caesar's corn destroyed by river and fire, to harm the body, and to ruin a person or his hopes.[2][5] It meant to make food rot, as in Cato, to adulterate, as in Virgil, to change for the worse, to corrupt a word, and to falsify documents, as in Cicero.[2] It meant to deprave morally, as in Plautus, to bribe, suborn, as in Cicero, to seduce, as in Terence, and to tempt, beguile.[2] Döderlein says dēprāvō makes something worse but still amendable.[6]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to corrupt, pervert, spoil, break to pieces.[7] It survives in Italian corrompere and Spanish corromper, and Old French correcier, French courroucer, comes from a derivative.[1] English corrupt came in the early 14th century from its participle corruptus, and English corruption from corruptiō.[8]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of spoiling and depraving.[2][4]
  • 234–149 BC – Cato uses it of rotting food.[2][4]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of bribery and falsifying documents.[2][4]
  • early 14th century – English corrupt is recorded.[8]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To spoil, damage, destroy.[2]
  2. To ruin (a person, hopes).[2]
  3. To rot; to adulterate.[2]
  4. To change for the worse; to falsify.[2]
  5. To corrupt, deprave.[2]
  6. To bribe; to seduce.[2]

Word family

  • corruptēla
  • corruptibilis
  • corruptiō
  • corruptīvus
  • corruptor
  • corruptorius
  • corruptrīx
  • incorruptus
  • praecorrumpō
  • corruptus

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 n 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 d 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. ^ Döderlein, Ludwig (1874), Döderlein’s Hand-book of Latin Synonymes, tr. H. H. Arnold, Andover: W. F. Draper
  7. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com