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iocosus

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word iocosus

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
116–27 BC, Varro
Ultimate origin
Proto-Indo-European (*iok-o-)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin iocus
English joke
English jeopardy
French jeu
Latin iocosus
Latin iocor
French jouer

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [jɔˈkoː.sʊs][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [joˈkɔː.s̬us][1]

Forms

iocōsus (feminine iocōsa, neuter iocōsum); first/second-declension adjective[1] It is also spelled jocōsus.[1][2]

Etymology

It is from Latin iocus (“joke”) + -ōsus.[3][4][5] De Vaan traces iocus to Proto-Italic *joko- and Proto-Indo-European *iok-o- (“word, utterance”), comparing Umbrian iuka (“words, prayers”) and Old High German jehan (“to express, utter”).[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the OLD's earliest quotations Varro calls someone a kindly and jocular man, and Cicero speaks of a kind of letter that is familiar and jesting.[3][7]

Semantic evolution

Of persons it is fond of jesting, as Horace's Maecenas.[3][2] Of speech and writings it is full of fun: Ovid has a playful Muse.[2] It is also laughable: Cicero advises being serious on serious subjects and witty on light ones.[3] Church Latin glosses it humorous, witty, merry, sportive.[8] English jocose comes from it, from the 1670s.[5]

Timeline

  • 116–27 BC – Varro of a jocular man.[3][7]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero of jesting letters.[3][7]
  • 65–8 BC – Horace of Maecenas.[2][7]
  • 1670s – English jocose.[5]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Fond of jesting, jocular.[3][2][1][8]
  2. Full of fun, humorous; laughable.[3][2][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  5. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  7. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  8. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
Cite this entry

“Iocosus.” Etymologically, 20 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/iocosus. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·