Etymologically
Log in

effingo

Etymology and origin of the Latin word effingo

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
Cato
Ultimate origin
Proto-Indo-European (*dʰeyǵʰ-)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ɛfˈfɪŋ.ɡoː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [efˈfiŋ.ɡo][1]

Forms

effingō (present infinitive effingere, perfect active effīnxī, supine effictum); third conjugation[1] Also spelled ecfingō.[2]

Etymology

It is from ex- “out” and fingō “to shape, mould”.[2][1][3] De Vaan traces ⟨fingō⟩ to Proto-Italic *finge/o- (“to knead, form”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeyǵʰ-.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Cato, apparently of wiping clean.[2] Köbler dates Cato 234–149 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

Lewis & Short explain it as “to work out by pressing”, like Greek ⟨ekmássein⟩.[3] It meant to shape, mould, fashion, especially of artists, as in Cicero; to represent, portray, depict, as in Virgil; to reproduce, copy, imitate, as in Cicero; and in Cato apparently to wipe clean, wipe away.[2][6]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to form, fashion, rub, express, portray, wipe out.[7]

Timeline

  • 234–149 BC – Cato uses it of wiping.[2][5]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of shaping and imitating.[2][5]
  • 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it of portraying.[2][5]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To shape, mould, fashion.[2]
  2. To portray, depict.[2]
  3. To copy, imitate.[2]
  4. To wipe clean.[2]

Word family

  • effictiō
  • effigia
  • effigiēs
  • effigiātus
  • effigientia
  • adfingō
  • affingō
  • circumfingō
  • cōnfingō
  • dēfingō
  • diffingō
  • fingō
  • refingō
  • fictus

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ 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
  3. ^ a b 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
  6. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  7. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
Cite this entry

“Effingo.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/effingo. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·