revoco

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [ˈrɛ.wɔ.koː]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈrɛː.vo.ko]^[1]

Forms

revocō (present infinitive revocāre, perfect active revocāvī, supine revocātum); first conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is from re- “back” and vocō “to call”.^[2][1][3] An inscription has the participle ⟨revocitus⟩.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Plautus, of calling someone back, as quīn revocās? “why don't you call him back?”.^[2][4] Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.^[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant to call back, recall, troops from battle, as in Caesar, a defendant to court, and in Cicero a speaker after a digression.^[2] It meant to call back a performer for an encore, as in Cicero, to recall a commander to Rome, to recall from exile, and to recall to service.^[2] It meant to return an invitation, to bring a thing back to its place, to look back, and to recall what was sent.^[2] It meant to take back, and in Livy to cancel, revoke a decree.^[2] From Cicero it meant to restrain, dissuade, to restore to a condition or to health, to revive a custom, to refer back, recall to mind, trace to an origin, reduce, and to refer a matter to an authority.^[2]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it meant to recall, call away.^[6] English revoke came through Old French in the mid-14th century, first meaning to retract.^[3]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of calling back.^[2][4][5]
• c. 50 BC – Caesar uses it of recalling troops.^[2][5]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of recalling from exile and of reviving.^[2][5]
• 59 BC–17 AD – Livy uses it of revoking.^[2][5]
• mid-14th century – English revoke is recorded.^[3]

Meanings

Verb

1. To call back, recall; to recall troops.^[2]
2. To call for an encore.^[2]
3. To recall from a post or from exile.^[2]
4. To invite back.^[2]
5. To bring back; to take back.^[2]
6. To cancel, revoke.^[2]
7. To restrain, dissuade.^[2]
8. To restore; to revive.^[2]
9. To refer back; to recall to mind; to reduce.^[2]

Word family

• revocābilis
• revocātiō
• revocātor

Related words

• vocō
• vōx
• English revoke

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 s t u Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
5. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson