responso

Forms

respōnsō (present infinitive respōnsāre, perfect active respōnsāvī, supine respōnsātum); first conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin respondeō (“to answer”) + -tō (“frequentative suffix”), formed on the stem ⟨respōns-⟩.^[2][1] De Vaan lists it under spondeō (“to pledge”), which he traces to Proto-Indo-European *spond-eie/o- (“to libate”).^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is found from Plautus on,^[3] who uses it of replying: prō mē respōnsās tibi, “you give yourself the answer for me” (Cistellaria 507).^[2][4]

Semantic evolution

Plautus also uses it of answering back,^[2][5] as in num servī respōnsant?, “do the slaves answer back?”, and of satisfying someone's needs.^[2][4] In poetry it is used of places that echo a sound: in Virgil the banks and lakes respōnsant circā, “echo all around”,^[2][4] and in Statius of a reflection in water.^[2][5]

Horace gives it a moral sense, standing up to passions, rich dinners or proud Fortune.^[2][5] He even says of a hen that it may respōnsāre palātō, defy the palate by being tough.^[2][5]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of replying and of answering back.^[2][6]
• 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it of banks and lakes echoing a shout.^[2][6]
• 65–8 BC – Horace uses it of standing up to passions.^[2][6]
• c. 45–96 AD – Statius uses it of a reflection.^[2][6]

Meanings

Verb

1. To answer, reply (to someone, with dative).^[2][5]
2. (poetic, of places) To echo;^[2][4] (of a reflection) to answer back an image.^[2][4]
3. To answer back, reply defiantly;^[2][5] (figurative) to stand up to, resist (passions, fortune).^[2][5]
4. To satisfy the needs (of), do justice (to).^[2][4]

Word family

• responsitō

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 p q r Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
4. ^ a b c d e f 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 g Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de