retro
Forms
retrō (not comparable)[1]
Etymology
It is formed from ⟨*reter⟩, from re- “back” with the suffix ⟨-ter⟩, and the ending ⟨-ō⟩, like citrō, intrō and ultrō.[2][3]
Earliest recorded meaning
The OLD's earliest citation is from Terence, of a position behind.[2] Köbler dates Terence 190–159 BC.[4]
Semantic evolution
It meant towards the rear, backwards, as in Virgil; behind, as in Terence; back to where one came from, as in Lucretius; in the opposite direction; and back in time, back to the beginnings, as in Cicero.[2] It was also used as a preposition, and it forms compounds such as retrōcēdō “to go back”.[2][5]
In Medieval Latin it was a preposition “behind”, an adverb “in arrears”, and an indeclinable adjective “former”.[6] Old French riere “behind”, from it, is in rieregarde “rear guard”, the source of English rear.[7]
Timeline
- 190–159 BC – Terence uses it.[2][4]
- 96–55 BC – Lucretius uses it of going back.[2][4]
- 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it of moving backwards.[2][4]
- c. 1600 – English rear is recorded.[7]
Meanings
Adverb
Preposition
Word family
- deretro
- retroagō
- retrōcēdō
- retrōdō
- retroeō
- retrōgradior
- retrōdūcō
- retrōpendulus
- retrorsus
- retrōuersus
Related words
- re-
- citrō
- intrō
- ultrō
- English rear
References
- ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
- ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
- ^ a b c Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
- ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com