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proicio

Etymology and origin of the Latin word proicio

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
Ennius
Ultimate origin
Latin (iaciō)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [proːˈjɪ.ki.oː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [proˈjiː.t͡ʃi.o][1]

Forms

prōiciō (present infinitive prōicere, perfect active prōiēcī, supine prōiectum); third (-iō variant) conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is from prō- “forward” and iaciō “to throw”.[2][1][3][4] It is also spelled ⟨prōiiciō⟩ or ⟨prōiciō⟩, the usual form in inscriptions and manuscripts.[3][5] Isidore explains it as ⟨porrō abicere⟩ “to throw far away”.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Ennius, of flinging oneself forward.[2] Köbler dates Ennius 204–169 BC.[6]

Semantic evolution

It meant to throw forth, of the sea to cast ashore, as in Caesar, to pour out, and in Lucretius to cast a light.[2] From Ennius reflexively it meant to fling oneself forward, and in Cicero to rush into danger.[2] In Horace it meant to throw down before someone, in Varro to thrust forward, and in Cicero to make part of a building project.[2] In Tacitus it meant to lay low, in Cicero to prostrate oneself, and in Caesar to throw away, especially weapons.[2] In Plautus it meant to abandon a baby or forsake a person, in Catullus to waste, and in Cicero to cast out unburied corpses, to give up one's life, and to expose to a fate.[2]

It was borrowed into Spanish as proyecto, and Medieval Latin prōiectum gave English project about 1400, “a plan”, and prōiectiō gave English projection.[1][4]

Timeline

  • 204–169 BC – Ennius uses it of flinging oneself forward.[2][6]
  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of abandoning.[2][6]
  • c. 50 BC – Caesar uses it of throwing away weapons.[2][6]
  • c. 1400 – English project is recorded.[4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To throw forth; to cast up; to pour out; to cast (light); to blurt out.[2]
  2. To fling oneself forward; to rush into.[2]
  3. To throw down before.[2]
  4. To thrust forward; to make project; to jut out.[2]
  5. To lay low; to prostrate oneself.[2]
  6. To throw away, discard; to abandon; to waste.[2]
  7. To cast out; to banish.[2]
  8. To give up, renounce.[2]
  9. To expose (to a fate); to abandon oneself.[2]

Word family

  • prōiectīcius
  • prōiectiō
  • prōjectō
  • proiectorius
  • prōiectum
  • prōiectūra
  • prōjectus
  • prōiectē

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s 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 Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
Cite this entry

“Proicio.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/proicio. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·