fructuosus

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [fruːk.tuˈoː.sʊs]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [fruk.tuˈɔː.s̬us]^[1]

Forms

frūctuōsus (feminine frūctuōsa, neuter frūctuōsum, superlative frūctuōsissimus); first/second-declension adjective^[1]

Etymology

It is from frūctus “enjoyment, produce, profit” with the suffix -ōsus; ⟨frūctus⟩ is from fruor “to enjoy”, which de Vaan traces to Proto-Indo-European *bʰruHg-ye- (“to use”).^[2][1][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Varro, of what is lucrative.^[2] Köbler dates Varro 116–27 BC.^[5]

Semantic evolution

Of land it meant abounding in produce, fruitful, productive, especially of fruit trees, as in Cicero; producing rich gain, lucrative, valuable, as in Varro; and conferring many benefits, profitable, advantageous, as in Cicero's frūctuōsum est “it is useful”.^[2][6] Lewis & Short call it very frequent and classical.^[7]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant beneficial, fruitful, profitable, productive.^[8] British Medieval Latin used it for fruitful land and fruit-bearing trees.^[9]

Timeline

• 116–27 BC – Varro uses it.^[2][5]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of fruitful land.^[2][5]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Fruitful, productive.^[2]
2. Lucrative, valuable.^[2]
3. Profitable, advantageous.^[2]

Word family

• īnfrūctuōsus

Related words

• frūctus
• fruor
• frūx

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h 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. ^ 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 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. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
9. ^ Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press