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omnino

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word omnino

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
204–169 BC, Ennius

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ɔmˈniː.noː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [omˈniː.no][1]

Forms

omnīnō (not comparable)[1]

Etymology

It is formed from omnis “all”, as a fixed case form of an adjective ⟨*omn-īno-⟩ “whole”, with the same ending as repentīnō.[2][3][4][1] De Vaan thinks ⟨omnis⟩ may be a verbal adjective Proto-Italic *op-ni-, from the root of optō “to choose” or of ops “wealth”, but calls this uncertain.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Ennius makes Neoptolemus say he must philosophize, but briefly, nam omnīnō haud placēre, “for to do so altogether does not please him”.[5] Plautus has nōn omnīnō iam periī, “I am not entirely done for yet”.[3] De Vaan dates it from Plautus.[2]

Semantic evolution

Omnīnō is “in every respect, entirely, altogether”, and with numbers “in all, all told”, often stressing how small a total is.[3][5][1] With negatives it means “at all” (nihil omnīnō, “nothing at all”).[3][1] It also means “in general, as a whole”, sums up a matter (“in short”), and concedes a point before a sed, “it is quite true that”.[3]

Döderlein contrasts plānē, “completely” as against “almost”, with omnīnō, “altogether, generally” as against “partly”.[6] Church Latin glosses it “altogether, entirely, totally, utterly”.[7]

Timeline

  • 204–169 BC – Ennius: nam omnīnō haud placēre.[5][8]
  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus: nōn omnīnō iam periī.[3][8]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero: nihil omnīnō relictum, “nothing at all was left”.[3][8]
  • 116–27 BC – Varro uses it for “in general”.[3][8]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. entirely, altogether, wholly, utterly.[3][5][1][7]
  2. (with numbers) In all, all told; only.[3][1]
  3. (with negatives) At all.[3][5][1]
  4. In general, on the whole.[3]
  5. (in concessions) It is quite true that.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m 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 d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Döderlein, Ludwig (1874), Döderlein’s Hand-book of Latin Synonymes, tr. H. H. Arnold, Andover: W. F. Draper
  7. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  8. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
Cite this entry

“Omnino.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/omnino. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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