Etymologically
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dissono

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈdɪs.sɔ.noː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈdis.so.no][1]

Forms

dissonō (present infinitive dissonāre, perfect active dissonuī); first conjugation, no passive, no supine stem[1]

Etymology

It is from dis- “apart” and sonō “to sound”, the opposite of cōnsonō.[2][1][3] De Vaan traces ⟨sonō⟩ to Proto-Indo-European *swenH- (“to sound”).[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Lewis & Short cite Vitruvius, dissonantēs locī “places that give discordant sounds”.[3] Köbler dates Vitruvius c. 84–c. 25 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant to sound discordantly, be out of harmony, as in Vitruvius, and figuratively to disagree, differ, as in Columella and Ammianus, and Lewis & Short call it very rare and not before Augustus.[2][3]

It survives in Italian dissonare and French dissoner.[1]

Timeline

  • c. 84–c. 25 BC – Vitruvius uses it.[3][5]
  • 1st century AD – Columella uses it figuratively.[3][5]
  • c. 390 AD – Ammianus Marcellinus uses it.[3][5]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To sound discordantly, be dissonant.[2][3]
  2. To disagree, differ.[3]

Word family

  • dissonantia
  • dissonāns
  • dissonanter

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  5. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de