difficilis

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [dɪfˈfɪ.kɪ.lɪs]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [difˈfiː.t͡ʃi.lis]^[1]

Forms

difficilis (neuter difficile, comparative difficilior, superlative difficillimus, adverb difficulter or difficile or difficiliter); third-declension two-termination adjective^[1]

Etymology

It is from dis- (“not”) and facilis “easy”.^[2][1][3] Varro has an old neuter form ⟨difficul⟩, like facul.^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's first citations are from Plautus, of things hard to do.^[2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.^[4]

Semantic evolution

It meant hard to deal with or carry out, troublesome, difficult, as Cicero's things difficult to express, and ex difficilī “with difficulty”.^[2][5] Of persons it meant intractable, obstinate, as in Caecilius, and of animals hard to manage.^[2] Döderlein says arduus is steep, hard to climb, and a stronger word, while difficilis is hard to do.^[6]

In Medieval Latin it meant difficult, and ex difficilī “with difficulty”.^[7] It survives in French and Italian difficile and Spanish difícil.^[1] English difficulty comes from its noun difficultās in the late 14th century.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of difficult things.^[2][4]
• 230/220–168 BC – Caecilius uses it of an intractable person.^[2][4]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of things hard to express.^[5][4]
• late 14th century – English difficulty is recorded.^[8]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Difficult, hard, troublesome.^[2]
2. (of persons) Intractable, obstinate.^[2]
3. (of animals) Hard to manage.^[2]

Word family

• difficultās
• indifficulter
• perdifficilis
• praedifficilis
• subdifficilis
• difficilē
• difficiliter
• difficulter

Related words

• facilis
• arduus
• English difficulty

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 Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b 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. ^ a b 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. ^ 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
8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com