Etymologically
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plico

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈplɪ.koː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈpliː.ko][1]

Forms

plicō (present infinitive plicāre, perfect active plicuī, supine plicātum); first conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is a back-formation from compound verbs in -plicō, such as applicō, complicō, explicō and implicō, which are older than the simple verb.[2][1] De Vaan takes these as *-plek-ā-, verbs made from compound adjectives, and connects them with plectō “to plait”, inherited from Proto-Italic *plekt-, from Proto-Indo-European *pleḱ- (“to plait, twine”).[2] Cognate with Ancient Greek πλέκω (plékō, “to plait”).[3][2] The TLL notes that most scholars explain the i from the compounds, but that the senses of folding and plaiting differ.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates the simple verb from Lucretius, who uses it of bending the joints of the legs; the compounds are found from Plautus.[2][3] Köbler dates Lucretius 96–55 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant to fold, bend or flex, and to twine or coil, as a snake coils itself.[3] In post-classical prose it was used of folding or rolling up a document.[6][7]

It survives in Romanian pleca, Italian piegare, French plier and French ployer, and Spanish plegar.[1] Old French pleir gave English plait, and Latin plicāre lies behind English ply through English apply.[8]

Timeline

  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses the compounds applicāre and explicāre.[2][5]
  • 96–55 BC – Lucretius uses the simple verb of bending limbs.[3][5]
  • 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it of a snake coiling.[3][5]
  • late 14th century – English plait “to fold” is recorded.[8]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To fold, bend, flex.[3]
  2. To twine, coil.[3]
  3. To roll up (a document).[7]

Word family

  • applicō
  • circumplicō
  • complex
  • complicō
  • dēplicō
  • displicō
  • explicō
  • implicō
  • interplicō
  • perplicātus
  • plica
  • plicātilis
  • plectō
  • supplex
  • English ply
  • English plait
  • English apply
  • English complicate
  • English explicit

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e 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 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 Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  6. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com