parum

Forms

parum (comparative minus, superlative minimē)^[1] Its comparative is minus and its superlative minimē.^[2][1]

Etymology

It is the neuter of parvus “small”, used as a noun and adverb.^[3][2][1][4] De Vaan derives ⟨parvus⟩ from Proto-Italic *pauro-, from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂u-ro-, with metathesis of ⟨*-wr-⟩; ⟨parum⟩ keeps the regular outcome ⟨*parom⟩ of ⟨*parwom⟩, while ⟨parvus⟩ restored the ⟨v⟩.^[4] The same stem is in paucus and pauper, and in Ancient Greek παῦρος (paûros, “little”).^[4][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates it from Plautus,^[4] who has fortassis tū aurī dēmpsistī parum?, “perhaps you took too little of the gold?”, and periī, prōspiciō parum, “I'm lost, I can hardly see”.^[3]

Semantic evolution

As a noun parum is “too little, not enough” (parum est, “it is not enough”), and as an adverb “insufficiently, too little”, sometimes almost a plain negative (parum intellegere, to fail to understand).^[3][2][1] Later it means “not enough to matter” (Seneca: dolēbimus, sed parum, “we shall grieve, but not much”).^[3] Church Latin glosses it “little, less, too little, not enough”.^[5]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus: prōspiciō parum.^[3][6]
• 190–159 BC – Terence: quod mē fēcisse aiēbās parum, “what you said I had done too little”.^[3][6]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero: in illā autem lepōris parum, “but in that one too little charm”.^[3][6]
• 4 BC–65 AD – Seneca: dolēbimus, sed parum.^[3][6]

Meanings

Adverb

1. Too little, insufficiently, not enough.^[3][2][1][5]
2. Not enough to matter, little.^[3][1]

Noun

1. Too little, an insufficient amount;^[3][2] parum est, it is not enough.^[3][2]

Word family

• parumloquium
• perparum
• parumper

Related words

• parvus
• paulum
• minus
• satis

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 Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
3. ^ 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
4. ^ 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
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