Etymologically
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lapido

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈɫa.pɪ.doː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈlaː.pi.do][1]

Forms

lapidō (present infinitive lapidāre, perfect active lapidāvī, supine lapidātum); first conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin lapis (“stone”) + -ō.[2][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Spanish War, a continuation of Caesar's commentaries, tells how soldiers began to stone and threaten a man who had killed envoys.[2][3]

Semantic evolution

It meant to throw stones at, to stone, and Lewis & Short note it is not found before the Augustan age.[3][2] Florus says an army stoned its commander, and Petronius uses it too.[3][4] Impersonally, lapidat meant “it rains stones”, a portent Livy often records, as at Veii.[2] Macrobius uses it figuratively of attacking someone, and Petronius of covering with stones.[5] The Vulgate uses it of the stoning of Stephen.[3]

Its descendants include French lapider and Spanish lapidar.[1] English lapidate is recorded in the 1620s, and English dilapidated comes from the compound dīlapidō.[6][1]

Timeline

  • 59 BC–17 AD – Livy records showers of stones.[2][7]
  • before 66 AD – Petronius uses it.[3][7]
  • 390–406 AD – The Vulgate uses it of the stoning of Stephen.[3][7]
  • 1620s – English lapidate is recorded.[6]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To throw stones at, to stone.[2][1]
  2. (impersonal) It rains stones.[2]
  3. To cover with stones.[5]
  4. (figurative) To assail.[1][5]

Word family

  • dīlapidō
  • ēlapidō
  • lapidātiō
  • lapidator
  • lapidēscō
  • lapidāris
  • lapidārius
  • lapideus
  • lapidōsus
  • lapis
  • English lapidate
  • English dilapidated

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  5. ^ a b c Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  6. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  7. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de