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intercido

Etymology and origin of the Latin word intercido

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intercido1 to fall between, be lost

Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
Livy
Ultimate origin
Latin (cadō)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ɪnˈtɛr.kɪ.doː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [inˈtɛr.t͡ʃi.do][1]

Forms

intercidō (present infinitive intercidere, perfect active intercidī); third conjugation, no passive, no supine stem[1]

Etymology

This verb is from inter- and cadō “to fall”.[2][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citations are from Livy, of weapons falling between ships.[2][3] Köbler dates Livy 59 BC–17 AD.[4]

Semantic evolution

It meant to fall between, as in Livy, who says the ships were so crowded that hardly a weapon fell in vain between them.[2][3] Livy also used it of things lost or wasted and of abstract things that lapse, Horace of what is forgotten, and Ovid of people who perish along the way.[2]

Timeline

  • 59 BC–17 AD – Livy uses it.[2][4]
  • 65–8 BC – Horace uses it of what is forgotten.[2][4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To fall between.[2]
  2. To be lost; to be forgotten.[2]
  3. To perish; to lapse.[2]

intercido2 to cut through

Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
Cicero
Ultimate origin
Latin (caedō)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ɪn.tɛrˈkiː.doː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [in.terˈt͡ʃiː.do][1]

Forms

intercīdō (present infinitive intercīdere, perfect active intercīdī, supine intercīsum); third conjugation[1]

Etymology

This verb is from inter- and caedō “to cut”.[2][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Cicero, of cutting through.[2] Köbler dates Cicero 81–43 BC.[4]

Semantic evolution

It meant to cut through, sever, and to thin by cutting, as in Cicero.[2] In Seneca it meant to cut short, interrupt, and in Pliny the Elder to cut the seals of a document, tamper with it.[2]

It survives in Italian intercidere.[1]

Timeline

  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it.[2][4]
  • 4 BC–65 AD – Seneca uses it of cutting short.[2][4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To cut through, sever.[2]
  2. To cut short, interrupt.[2]
  3. To tamper with (a document).[2]

Word family

  • intercīsē
  • intercīsus

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
Cite this entry

“Intercido.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/intercido. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·