dubito

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [ˈdʊ.bɪ.toː]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈduː.bi.to]^[1]

Forms

dubitō (present infinitive dubitāre, perfect active dubitāvī, supine dubitātum); first conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is from ⟨dubō⟩, glossed by Paulus' Festus, with the frequentative suffix -itō.^[2][3] Wiktionary takes ⟨dubō⟩ as a denominative of ⟨*dubos⟩ “in doubt”, from Proto-Indo-European *dwi- (“two”) and Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- (“to be”), as in dubius.^[1] Lewis and Short derived it instead from ⟨*duhibeō⟩ “to hold as two”.^[4] Etymonline compares German ⟨zweifeln⟩ from ⟨zwei⟩ “two”.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citations are from Plautus, of wavering over an action, and Accius, of being uncertain.^[2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.^[6]

Semantic evolution

It meant to be in doubt about a fact, be uncertain, as in Accius, and in Cicero to doubt something and to treat a point as arguable.^[2] From Plautus it meant to be in two minds about an action, waver, hesitate, as Caesar's men who said they had never hesitated or been afraid.^[2][7] In Cicero it also meant to wonder whether one might not do something.^[2]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to doubt, hesitate, waver, and nōn dubitāre to believe firmly.^[8] It survives in French douter and Catalan dubtar, and Old French doter gave English doubt about 1200, first “to fear”.^[1][5]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of hesitating.^[2][6]
• 170–c. 90 BC – Accius uses it of uncertainty.^[2][6]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of doubting a point.^[2][6]
• c. 1200 – English doubt is recorded.^[5]

Meanings

Verb

1. To be uncertain, doubt.^[2]
2. To treat as arguable.^[2]
3. To be in two minds, hesitate, waver.^[2]
4. To wonder whether one might.^[2]

Word family

• addubitō
• dubitābilis
• dubitātim
• dubitātiō
• dubitātīvus
• dubitātor
• indubitandus
• indubitātus
• indubitō
• subdubitō
• dubitanter

Related words

• dubius
• duo
• English doubt
• English dubious

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 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. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
7. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
8. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson