impetrabilis

Forms

impetrābilis (neuter impetrābile); third-declension two-termination adjective^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin impetrō (“to obtain by request”) + -bilis.^[2][3][1] De Vaan takes impetrō to contain patrō (“to accomplish”), a verb made from pater (“father”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is found from Plautus on,^[3] first in an active sense, “good at getting what one asks”: in the Mercator a character says that nobody alive is better at getting his way (impetrabilior qui vivat nullus est), and in the Mostellaria one says that no envoy more likely to win him over could have come.^[2][3][5]

Semantic evolution

The passive sense, “easy to obtain”, appears in Livy, who speaks of a peace that would be easier to get, and in Tacitus of pardon.^[2][5][6] Propertius has a vow that wins its request, and Plautus a lucky day.^[6] Ammianus calls a ruler successful in carrying out his plans impetrabilis.^[5] An inscription is dedicated to Hercules inpetrabilis.^[3]

In medieval Latin it meant “obtainable by prayer or request”,^[7] and in British sources also what could be obtained in a court.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of people who get what they ask.^[2][3][9]
• 57/46–12 BC – Propertius uses it of a vow.^[10][6][9]
• 59 BC–AD 17 – Livy uses it in the sense “easy to obtain”.^[2][9]
• c. 390 AD – Ammianus uses it of a successful ruler.^[5][9]
• 1279 – A letter of Peckham uses it of what could be obtained at the Roman curia.^[8]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Easy to obtain or achieve, attainable.^[2][11]
2. Good at getting what one asks, persuasive.^[2][5]
3. Lucky, effective: of a day, of a vow.^[5][6]
4. (Medieval Latin) Obtainable by prayer or request;^[7][8] (law) obtainable in a court.^[7][8]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e 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 d e f Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
6. ^ a b c d Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
7. ^ a b c Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
8. ^ a b c d 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
9. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
10. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
11. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press