detineo
Pronunciation
Forms
dētineō (present infinitive dētinēre, perfect active dētinuī, supine dētentum); second conjugation[1]
Etymology
It is from dē- “away” and teneō “to hold”.[2][1][3]
Earliest recorded meaning
The OLD's earliest citation is from Plautus, of keeping someone from going.[2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[4]
Semantic evolution
It meant to keep someone from going, detain, as in Plautus, and the Rhetorica ad Herennium uses it of keeping possession of a thing.[2] In Cicero it meant to occupy someone's attention, in Celsus to keep in a condition, and in Ovid to keep an activity going, with sē dētinēre to keep oneself alive.[2]
In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to withhold, detain, engage.[5] It survives in Italian detenere, French détenir and Spanish detener, and through Old French it gave English detain in the early 15th century.[1][3]
Timeline
- c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of detaining.[2][4]
- 86/82 BC – The Rhetorica ad Herennium uses it of retaining.[2][4]
- 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of occupying.[2][4]
- early 15th century – English detain is recorded.[3]
Meanings
Verb
- To detain, hold back.[2]
- To keep possession of.[2]
- To occupy.[2]
- To keep (in a condition); to keep going.[2]
Word family
- dētentātiō
- dētentiō
- detento
- detentor
- detentus
Related words
- abstineō
- attineō
- circumteneō
- contineō
- distineō
- obtineō
- pertineō
- retineō
- sustineō
- teneō
- English detain
- English detention
References
- ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
- ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson