inficio
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Pronunciation
Forms
īnficiō (present infinitive īnficere, perfect active īnfēcī, supine īnfectum); third (-iō variant) conjugation[1]
Etymology
It is from in- “in” and faciō “to do, make”, literally “to put in”.[2][1][3]
Earliest recorded meaning
The OLD's earliest citation is from Plautus, of dyeing.[2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[4]
Semantic evolution
It meant to dip in a dye, to stain, as in Plautus, and in Ovid to discolour, stain with blood.[2] In Virgil it meant to impregnate with a substance or smell, and to taint, poison, infect.[2] In Cicero it meant to make a stain sink in, figuratively.[2]
In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to stain, pollute, infect, dip.[5] Its participle īnfectus gave English infect in the late 14th century, and its noun īnfectiō gave English infection.[3][1]
Timeline
- c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of dyeing.[2][4]
- 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it of poisoning, infecting.[2][4]
- 43 BC–18 AD – Ovid uses it of staining with blood.[2][4]
- late 14th century – English infect is recorded.[3]
Meanings
Verb
Word family
- īnfectiō
- infectīuus
- īnfector
- infectrix
- īnfectus
- inficiscō
Related words
- afficiō
- cōnficiō
- dēficiō
- efficiō
- faciō
- interficiō
- officiō
- perficiō
- praeficiō
- prōficiō
- English infect
- English infection
References
- ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
- ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson