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remunero

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word remunero

Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
116–27 BC, Varro
Ultimate origin
Latin (mūnus)

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [rɛˈmuː.nɛ.roː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [reˈmuː.ne.ro][1]

Forms

remūnerō (present infinitive remūnerāre, perfect active remūnerāvī, supine remūnerātum); first conjugation[1] In classical Latin the verb is usually the deponent remūneror, remūnerārī, remūnerātus sum.[2][3][4] The active remūnerō occurs in Petronius, in Marcus Aurelius' letters to Fronto, in Tertullian and in the jurist Papinian.[5][4]

Etymology

It is from Latin re- (“back”) + mūnerō (“to give, bestow”),[2][1] and that verb is made from mūnus (“duty; gift”).[6][7] De Vaan reconstructs that noun as Proto-Italic *moinos- (“duty, obligation, task”) and, with a query, Proto-Indo-European *h2moi-no- (“exchange”).[6] Cognate with Oscan múíníkú (“common”), Old Irish móin (“value, treasure”) and Lithuanian maĩnas (“exchange”).[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The earliest quotation in the OLD is from Varro's work on farming: ut … remūnerēminī nōs, “that you repay us”.[2][3]

Semantic evolution

Cicero uses it of repaying a person with a gift or a service and of requiting a kindness;[2][3] he writes that he has nothing to repay with but his goodwill.[3] Caesar has it of rewarding someone with a great prize,[3][4] and Catullus of paying someone back with punishments.[2][4] Columella says of rich soil that it repays the farmer's outlay and labour with a large crop,[2][5] and Gellius uses it of answering a sophism in kind.[2][5] The active form is found from Petronius on,[5] and in Ecclesiastical Latin it means to pay, reward, remunerate.[8] English remunerate comes from its participle, or is a back-formation from remuneration.[7]

Timeline

  • 116–27 BC – Varro uses it of repaying someone.[2][9]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of repaying gifts and kindnesses.[2][9]
  • 81/79–52/50 BC – Catullus uses it of paying someone back with punishments.[2][9]
  • before 66 AD – Petronius uses the active form.[5][9]
  • 1520s – English remunerate is recorded.[7]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To repay, recompense, reward (a person), especially with a gift.[2][3][8]
  2. To pay back, requite (an injury), punish.[2][4]
  3. To reward, requite (a kindness or service); to answer (an argument) in kind.[2][5]
  • mūnus
  • mūnerō
  • remūnerātiō
  • English remunerate

Usage notes

Lewis & Short give retribuō as a synonym.[3]

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 Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b c d e Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  5. ^ a b c d e f Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  6. ^ a b c de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  7. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  8. ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  9. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
Cite this entry

“Remunero.” Etymologically, 20 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/remunero. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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