nisus

Forms

nīsus m (genitive nīsūs); fourth declension^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin nītor (“to lean, strive”) + -tus.^[2][1] De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of nītor, which he reconstructs as Proto-Italic *kniχw-et-; he notes that the verb's first meaning could have been either to lean on or to exert pressure.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Pacuvius has it first, in a line quoted by Cicero: “with a gentle step, lest a jolt bring on a greater pain”.^[2][3][4]

Semantic evolution

It is first the act of resting one's weight on the ground, a step or footing: Sallust has soldiers trying the places that seemed doubtful for a foothold.^[2][4] It is also a strong muscular effort, as the vain beating of wings in Lucretius, the pressure of natural forces, as of fire in Pliny the Elder, and in general an endeavour.^[2][4] Of things it is a thrust or tendency in one direction, as of the stars held together by their own pressure in Cicero.^[2] Lewis & Short note that it is mostly poetic, nīxus being the form of good prose.^[4] Church Latin glosses it effort, strength, striving.^[5]

Timeline

• 220–130 BC – Pacuvius of a gentle step.^[2][6]
• 96–55 BC – Lucretius of the beating of wings.^[2][6]
• 86–34 BC – Sallust of footing.^[2][6]

Meanings

Noun

1. A resting of one's weight; a step, footing.^[2][4]
2. A strong muscular effort; pressure; an endeavour, striving.^[2][4][5][1]
3. A pressing forward, advance; of things, a thrust or tendency.^[2]

Related words

• nītor
• nīxus

Usage notes

nīsus is also the perfect participle of nītor, a variant of nīxus.^[4][1] Nīsus was a king of Megara, betrayed by his daughter Scylla and turned into a sea eagle,^[2] or a sparrowhawk in Lewis & Short's account.^[4] From the name Ancient Greek Νῖσος (Nîsos) Medieval Latin had nīsus, “a sparrowhawk, a fish-hawk”.^[7][1][6]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b 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 g h Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
7. ^ Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill