Etymologically
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fructuosus

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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

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