equito
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Pronunciation
Forms
equitō (present infinitive equitāre, perfect active equitāvī, supine equitātum); first conjugation, no passive[1]
Etymology
It is from Latin eques (“horseman”) + -ō.[2][1]
Earliest recorded meaning
The OLD's first citation is Lucilius, of seeing a horse run and carry a rider.[2]
Semantic evolution
It means to ride on horseback:[2][3] Cicero writes of peoples among whom skill in hunting and riding is praised, and of someone who rode in the army.[2][3] Sallust, Horace and Suetonius use it too, and Horace has riding on a long reed.[3] Paul's epitome of Festus records that the ancients said equitāre for serving with a public horse.[2] It is also to skirmish or manoeuvre on horseback.[1]
Timeline
- c. 180–102 BC – Lucilius of a horse carrying a rider.[2]
- 81–43 BC – Cicero of riding.[2][3]
- 86–34 BC – Sallust.[3]
- 65–8 BC – Horace of riding on a reed.[3]
Meanings
Verb
- To ride on horseback;[2][3][1] (of a horse) to carry a rider.[2][3][1]
- To serve with a public horse, as a knight.[2]
- To skirmish, manoeuvre.[1]
Word family
- abequitō
- adequitō
- circumequitō
- equitābilis
- equitātiō
- equitātus
- inequitō
- interequitō
- obequitō
- perequitō
- praeterequitō