narro

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [ˈnar.roː]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈnaː.roː], [ˈnar.ro]^[1]

Forms

narrō (present infinitive narrāre, perfect active narrāvī, supine narrātum); first conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is from earlier ⟨nārō⟩, from Proto-Italic *gnārāō “to make known”, a denominative of gnārus “knowing”, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- (“to know”).^[1][2][3] The OLD compares Umbrian naratu (“let him narrate”).^[2] Festus reports an old ⟨gnārigāvit⟩.^[4] Varro says one ⟨narrat⟩ when one makes another ⟨nārus⟩, knowing.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Livius Andronicus, of describing.^[2] Köbler dates him 280/260–before 200 BC.^[6]

Semantic evolution

It meant to relate, tell, say, with an object, a clause or an indirect question, as in Plautus, and in Cicero narrō tibī “let me tell you”.^[2] It meant to describe, tell about, and with dē to talk about.^[2] In comic dialogue quid narrās? expressed surprise or indignation, and Terence's narrās bene meant “that's good news”.^[2] In Seneca the passive meant to be talked about, and in Quintilian's rhetoric to state the facts of a case, the narrātiō.^[2]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to say, tell, relate, narrate, record.^[7] English narrate is recorded from 1748, a back-formation from narration or from its participle.^[8]

Timeline

• 280/260–before 200 BC – Livius Andronicus uses it of describing.^[2][6]
• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of telling.^[2][6]
• 190–159 BC – Terence uses narrās bene.^[2][6]
• 1748 – English narrate is recorded.^[8]

Meanings

Verb

1. To relate, tell, narrate, narrō tibī, let me tell you.^[2]
2. To describe; to talk about.^[2]
3. quid narrās?, what are you saying?^[2]
4. (passive) To be talked about.^[2]
5. (rhetoric) To state the facts.^[2]

Word family

• adnarro
• dēnārrō
• ēnārrō
• nārrābilis
• nārrātiō
• narratiuus
• narrātor
• nārrātus
• praenarrō
• renarrō
• narrātīvē
• narrātum

Related words

• narrātiuncula
• gnārus
• nōscō
• English narrate
• English narrative

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
4. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ Marcus Terentius Varro, De lingua Latina (text of The Latin Library; book and paragraph numbers as there).
6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
7. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com