insero
insero1 sow, graft
Pronunciation
Forms
īnserō (present infinitive īnserere, perfect active īnsēvī, supine īnsitum); third conjugation[1]
Etymology
The verb “sow, graft” is formed from Latin in- + serō (“to sow”).[2][3][1] De Vaan traces this serō to Proto-Italic *si-se/o- (“to sow”) and the reduplicated present Proto-Indo-European *si-sh₁-e/o- (“to sow”), from Proto-Indo-European *seh₁-; cognate with Lithuanian sėti (“to sow”) and Gothic 𐍃𐌰𐌹𐌰𐌽 (saian, “to sow”).[4]
Earliest recorded meaning
Cato, De agri cultura, of olive cuttings set in the nursery: eās sīc īnseritō, “plant them like this”.[2][5]
Semantic evolution
It is to sow or plant, and to graft a scion on a tree: Cato tells how to take a shoot of the kind one wishes to graft, Varro grafts a good pear on a wild one, and Virgil says wild trees lose their wild nature when grafted.[2][3] Figuratively it is to implant or root: Cicero says eloquence plants new opinions and pulls out those already implanted.[2] Its participle īnsitus is “inborn”.[3]
Church Latin glosses it “implant, ingraft, insert”.[6]
Timeline
- 234–149 BC – Cato of planting and grafting.[2][5]
- 116–27 BC – Varro of grafting pears.[3][5]
- 81–43 BC – Cicero of implanting opinions.[2][5]
Meanings
Verb
- To sow or plant (in).[2][1]
- To graft (a scion; a tree).[2][3][6]
- (figuratively) To implant, fix.[2][6]
Word family
- īnsitus
- īnsitiō
- īnsitīvus
insero2 insert
Pronunciation
Forms
īnserō (present infinitive īnserere, perfect active īnseruī, supine īnsertum); third conjugation[1] Livius Andronicus has the old passive īnserinuntur.[2][4]
Etymology
The verb “insert” is formed from Latin in- + serō (“to join, string together”).[2][3][7] De Vaan traces this serō to Proto-Italic *sere/o- and Proto-Indo-European *ser- (“to thread, tie together”), cognate with Ancient Greek εἴρω (eírō, “to fasten together”) and Oscan aserum (“to lay on”).[4]
Earliest recorded meaning
De Vaan's first author is Livius Andronicus.[4]
Semantic evolution
It is to put or thrust in, to insert: Cicero, translating Aeschylus, has wedges driven in that break the limbs, and Ovid's oculōs īnserere is to look into something.[2] It is also to attach or join, and manūs īnserere is to lay hands on.[2] It is to put among others or include, as Horace's boy who could be set among a chorus of girls, and to insert into a book or speech, as Livy's speaker who inserts complaints and demands.[2]
Church Latin glosses it “introduce, enroll, insert, intrude”.[6] English insert (1520s) comes from its participle īnsertus.[7]
Timeline
- 280/260–before 200 BC – Livius Andronicus.[4][5]
- 81–43 BC – Cicero of driving in wedges.[2][5]
- 65–8 BC – Horace of including among others.[2][5]
- 59 BC–17 AD – Livy of inserting in a speech.[2][5]
- 1520s – English insert.[7]
Meanings
Verb
- To put in, insert, introduce.[2][1][6]
- To attach, join, manūs īnserere, to lay hands on.[2]
- To place among, include; to insert (in a book or speech).[2][1][6]
Word family
- īnsertō
Related words
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b c d e f Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ a b c d e de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
- ^ a b c d e f g h Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
- ^ a b c d e f Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
- ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com