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intimus

Etymology and origin of the Latin word intimus

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
Plautus
Ultimate origin
Proto-Indo-European (*h₁én)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈɪn.tɪ.mʊs][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈin.ti.mus][1]

Forms

intimus (superlative, feminine intima, neuter intimum, no positive form, comparative interior, adverb intimē); first/second declension[1] Also spelled intumus.[2]

Etymology

It is from in- with the superlative suffix -timus, serving as the superlative of interior.[2][1] Wiktionary traces it to Proto-Indo-European *h₁éntm̥mos (“innermost”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁én (“in”).[1] De Vaan reconstructs ⟨in⟩ as Proto-Italic ⟨*en⟩, Proto-Indo-European *h₁(e)n (“in”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citations are Plautus, of the innermost and of close friends.[2] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.[4]

Semantic evolution

It meant innermost, furthest from the outside, as of a shrine in Cicero; the inmost part of the mind or heart; most secret, private; most profound, recondite; and of friends most intimate, closest, as in Plautus.[2][5]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it means innermost, most secret, close, and the plural intima the bowels.[6] German Intimus “close friend” is from it.[4]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of the inmost and of close friends.[2][4]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of the mind and of secrets.[2][4]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Innermost, inmost.[2][7]
  2. Most secret, private.[2]
  3. Most profound, recondite.[2]
  4. Most intimate, closest (of friends).[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  4. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  6. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  7. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
Cite this entry

“Intimus.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/intimus. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

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