Etymologically
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medicus

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 15 October 2026 at 19:57. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈmɛ.dɪ.kʊs][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈmɛː.di.kus][1]

Forms

medicus m (genitive medicī); second declension[1]

Etymology

It is derived from medeor “to heal” with the suffix -cus.[2][3][1] The verb is inherited from Proto-Italic *med-ē-, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *med- (“to measure, take care of”).[3][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The noun “doctor” is found from Plautus onwards.[3][4]

Semantic evolution

As a noun it meant a doctor, physician or surgeon.[2][1] As an adjective it meant healing or medical, as Virgil's “to put healing hands to wounds” and Ovid's ars medica, “the art of healing”.[5][6] Digitus medicus or medicus alone was the ring finger, after Greek usage.[6][4]

Silius Italicus used the adjective in the sense “magic”.[7] It survives as Italian medico, and English medic was borrowed in the 1650s, while medical comes from Late Latin medicalis.[1][8]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of doctors.[3][4]
  • 86/82 BC – The Rhetorica ad Herennium uses it of the ring finger.[6][4]
  • 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it as an adjective, “healing”.[5][4]
  • 1650s – English medic is borrowed.[8]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A doctor, physician, surgeon.[2][1]
  2. The ring finger.[6][4]

Adjective

  1. Healing, curative, medical.[2][1]
  2. Magic.[7][1]

Usage notes

A different word, Mēdicus, means “Median, of the Medes”, and malus Medica was the citron tree.[2][1]

References

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