Etymologically
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praetervolo

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Pronunciation

  • Classical: [prae̯ˈtɛr.wɔ.ɫoː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [preˈtɛr.vo.lo][1]

Forms

praetervolō (present infinitive praetervolāre, perfect active praetervolāvī, supine praetervolātum); first conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin praeter- + volō2 (“to fly”).[2][1][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in Cicero,[4][3] whose verse translation of Aratus says that the constellation of the Bird flies past the Horse.[2][5]

Semantic evolution

Of birds and things in the air it meant to fly past: Curtius tells of a crow that dropped a clod as it flew past, Seneca of shooting stars that fly by and cut the air, and Suetonius of an eagle flying past.[2][6] It also meant to speed past on the ground: Horace, splitting the verb in two, urges his hearers to fly past the Etruscan shores, and Florus tells of two youths on white horses who sped past like stars.[2]

Figuratively it meant to slip past unnoticed: Cicero says that subtle thoughts often escape people who are not subtle themselves, and that the rhythm of a speech escapes listeners intent on its meaning,[2][5] and Livy speaks of an opportunity that flies past in a moment.[2][6] Cicero also uses it for passing quickly over a subject.[2][5] The TLL finds it rare in verse.[3] The glossaries explain it as to pass by quickly.[7]

Timeline

  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of a constellation and of thoughts that escape notice.[2][4]
  • 65–8 BC – Horace uses it, split by tmesis, of sailing past the Etruscan shores.[2][4]
  • 59 BC–17 AD – Livy uses it of a fleeting opportunity.[2][4]
  • c. 75–c. 150 AD – Suetonius uses it of an eagle flying past.[2][4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To fly past or by.[2][5][8]
  2. To speed past, pass rapidly.[2]
  3. (figurative) To slip by unnoticed, escape (someone's attention).[2][5][6]
  4. To pass over (a subject) cursorily.[2][9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  4. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  7. ^ Goetz, Georg (1888–1923), Corpus glossariorum Latinorum, Leipzig: Teubner; vols. VI–VII Thesaurus glossarum emendatarum, digital ed. CGLO, Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  8. ^ Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  9. ^ Lewis, Charlton T. (1890), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: American Book Company