pessimus

Forms

pessimus (feminine pessima, neuter pessimum); first/second-declension superlative adjective^[1][2]

Etymology

It serves as the superlative of malus¹ “bad”.^[1][2] It is inherited from Proto-Italic *ped-isamo-, built on the same stem as the comparative peior “worse”, from *pedjōs.^[3] De Vaan explains the double /s/ as the result of an assimilation in which the vowel was not lengthened by Lachmann's Law, because /d/ and /s/ were originally not in contact; alternatively, following Jasanoff, he allows a preform with a long vowel, with ⟨ss⟩ kept by analogy and the vowel shortened later.^[3]

Since Latin comparatives and superlatives are usually made from adjectives or adverbs, a base *ped- in the sense “foot” or “to fall” would be unexpected.^[3] De Vaan therefore suggests that a stem meaning “bad” was abstracted from the adverb pessum “to the bottom, to destruction”, which reflects Proto-Indo-European *ped-tu- (“the falling”) or *pet-tu-, and that the comparative and the superlative were built on it.^[3] For cognates he refers to those of pessum, such as Sanskrit पद्यते (pádyate, “moves, falls”) and Old English ge-fetan (“to fall”).^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan records it from Naevius on,^[3] with the dates c. 235–200 BC given for that poet;^[4] it means “worst”, the superlative of “bad”.^[1][3]

Semantic evolution

Like its positive malus¹, it covers both what is worst in quality and what is most wicked.^[1][5] Ecclesiastical Latin also uses it for things that are very serious or very grievous.^[5] Köbler lists it in Plautus and in later glossaries and Bible texts.^[4]

Timeline

• c. 235–200 BC – Naevius uses the superlative.^[3][4]
• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it.^[4]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Superlative of malus¹: worst, very bad.^[1][5]
2. Most wicked, very evil.^[5]
3. Of things: very serious, most grievous.^[5]

Word family

• pessimō

Related words

• peior
• pessum

References

1. ^ a b c d e Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
2. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
3. ^ a b c d e f g h 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 Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
5. ^ a b c d e Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson