fremitus

Forms

fremitus m (genitive fremitūs); fourth declension^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from fremō (“to roar, murmur”) with the suffix -tus.^[2][1][3] De Vaan traces the verb to Proto-Italic *freme/o- and Proto-Indo-European *bʰrem-e/o- (“to hum, rumble”), though the root's exact form is not certain; it is cognate with Welsh brefu (“to bleat, roar”) and Middle High German brimmen (“to roar”).^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan gives Plautus as its first author,^[3] who has the sky echoing with the roar of men in the Amphitruo.^[2] Ennius has the forest rustling with the sound of its leaves.^[2][4]

Semantic evolution

It is a deep, continuous sound, the roar or rumble of natural things, the snorting of a horse before battle (Lucretius), and the noise of crowds and commotion.^[2][5] It is also grumbling or muttering, as Cicero's “what grumbling of men, what angry minds!”, and a buzz of applause, as the loud murmur and shouting that greeted a speech.^[2]

Church Latin glosses it “anger, fury, murmuring, shouting, clashing”.^[6]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus of the roar of warriors.^[2][3][4]
• 204–169 BC – Ennius of rustling leaves.^[2][4]
• 96–55 BC – Lucretius of a horse snorting.^[2][4]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero of grumbling and applause.^[2][4]

Meanings

Noun

1. A dull, continuous sound, roar, rumble, hum; snorting.^[2][1][5]
2. The noise of a crowd.^[2]
3. Grumbling, muttering.^[2][1][6]
4. A murmur of applause.^[2]

Related words

• fremō
• strepitus
• murmur

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d 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 c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
5. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson