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praebitor

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word praebitor

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
81–43 BC, Cicero
Ultimate origin
Latin praebeō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin habeo
French avoir
Italian avere
Latin praebeo
Latin praebitor
From the same root
Latin antehabeo ← habeo
Latin debeo ← habeo
Latin diribeo ← habeo
Latin habilis ← habeo
Latin habitudo ← habeo
Latin manubiae ← habeo
Latin perhibeo ← habeo
Latin posthabeo ← habeo
Latin prohibeo ← habeo

Forms

praebitor m (genitive praebitōris); third declension[1][2]

Etymology

It is from Latin praebeō (“to offer, supply”) + -tor.[1][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its first author is Cicero,[4] who quotes a letter of King Philip asking whether by such largesse the addressee wants the Macedonians to expect in him nōn rēgem suum sed ministrum et praebitōrem, “not their king but their servant and purveyor”.[3][2]

Semantic evolution

It is a rare word for a supplier or purveyor.[1][2] Christian writers apply it to God: Tertullian calls him creator and provider of all things, and Ambrose and Rufinus use it in the same way.[3] Chalcidius' translation has it for the hosts of a banquet.[3]

It also became a technical term: in inscriptions apparently of the 3rd century it names the makers who supplied lead pipes for water, and another inscription has a praebitor vīnārius;[3] the Theodosian Code uses it of those bound to provide transport for the public post.[3] Lewis and Short add a contractor for the government in an inscription.[2]

Timeline

  • 81–43 BC – Cicero quotes King Philip's letter using it.[3][2][4]
  • c. 160–220 AD – Tertullian calls God the provider of all things.[3][4]
  • 3rd century AD – Inscriptions use it for makers of lead water pipes.[3]
  • c. 340–397 AD – Ambrose uses it of God.[3][2][4]
  • 438 AD – The Theodosian Code uses it of those who provide transport for the post.[3][4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A supplier, purveyor, provider.[1][2][3]
  2. (Late Latin, Christianity) God as the provider of all things.[3]
  3. (inscriptions) A maker who supplies lead pipes for water; a supplier of wine.[3]
  4. (Late Latin, law) One bound to supply transport for the public post.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  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 m n o Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  4. ^ a b c d e f Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
Cite this entry

“Praebitor.” Etymologically, 23 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/praebitor. Accessed 23 Oct. 2026.

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