Etymologically

Etymology and origin of the Latin word exardeo

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
390–406 AD, Vulgate
Ultimate origin
Latin ārdeō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin ardeo
Latin exardeo
From the same root
Latin ardesco ← ardeo
Latin ardor ← ardeo

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ɛkˈsaːr.de.oː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [eɡˈzar.de.o][1]

Forms

exārdeō (present infinitive exārdēre, perfect active exārsī, supine exārsum); second conjugation[1] The perfect forms are listed under exārdēscō, since the two verbs share them.[2]

Etymology

It is from Latin ex- + ārdeō (“to burn”).[2][1] ārdeō is itself derived from āridus (“dry”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in the Vulgate, in the book of Sirach, where a fire will blaze up in the assembly of sinners.[2][4]

Semantic evolution

The Vulgate uses it for fire blazing[2][5] and of feelings that flare up: anger that is kindled in a short while in the Psalms, and burning with desire in Romans.[5] The TLL notes that the Vulgate's Sirach uses both this verb and exārdēscō.[2] A poem of Felix in the Latin Anthology uses it of marble that shines,[2] and a commentary on the Psalms ascribed to Jerome uses it transitively, of a fire that burns those who turn away from God's commandments.[2]

In medieval Latin it meant to blaze or burn, as in the Carmina Burana, and to be inflamed, of a bishop burning with zeal in Adam of Bremen.[6]

Timeline

  • 390–406 AD – The Vulgate uses it of fire blazing and of anger and desire.[2][5][7]
  • c. 1075 – Adam of Bremen uses it of zeal.[6][7]

Meanings

Verb

  1. (intransitive) To blaze, burn fiercely.[2][5][4]
  2. (figurative) To be inflamed, flare up (of anger or desire).[5][6]
  3. To shine.[2]
  4. (transitive) To burn.[2]

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 Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  3. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  4. ^ a b Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  5. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  7. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
Cite this entry

“Exardeo.” Etymologically, 20 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/exardeo. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·