Etymologically
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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈdeː.moː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈdɛː.mo][1]

Forms

dēmō (present infinitive dēmere, perfect active dēmpsī, supine dēmptum); third conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is a contraction of dē- and emō, whose original meaning was “to take”.[2][1][3][4] De Vaan traces ⟨emō⟩ to Proto-Indo-European *h₁em- (“to take”), and explains the perfect ⟨dēmpsī⟩ as a new formation made once ⟨dēmere⟩ no longer seemed to belong to ⟨emere⟩.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citations are from Plautus and Cato, of removing things.[2] Köbler dates Cato 234–149 BC.[6]

Semantic evolution

It meant to remove, take away things, as in Plautus, and to take away part of a mass, as in Cato, and Terence used it of abstract things and Livy of removing a person from a place or office.[2] Lewis & Short add to subtract.[4]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to take away, subtract, remove.[7] It is the second element of vīndēmia “grape harvest”, from vīnum and dēmere, the source of English vintage.[8]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of removing.[2][6]
  • 234–149 BC – Cato uses it of taking from a mass.[2][6]
  • 59 BC–17 AD – Livy uses it of removing people.[2][6]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To take away, remove.[2]
  2. To subtract.[4]

Word family

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g 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 Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  7. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  8. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com