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stello

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word stello

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
96–55 BC, Lucretius
Ultimate origin
Latin stēlla
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin stella
Italian stella
Latin stello

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈsteːl.loː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈstɛl.lo][1]

Forms

stēllō (present infinitive stēllāre, perfect active stēllāvī, supine stēllātum); first conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin stēlla (“star”) + -ō.[2][1][3] The OLD allows that it may instead be a back-formation from stēllātus (“starry”).[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

At first it is found only in the present participle stēllāns, “starry”:[4] Lucretius writes caelō stēllante, “in the starry sky”.[4]

Semantic evolution

The participle was poetic: Cicero in his verse, Virgil, Ovid and Valerius Flaccus use it of the starry sky and of night.[4] It was transferred to things that glitter, such as the jewels of a peacock's tail in Ovid,[4] the flight of glow-worms in Pliny the Elder,[4] and gleaming arms in Ammianus.[4]

Finite forms of the transitive verb, “to set with stars”, appear only after Augustus and are rare:[4] Pliny the Elder says that certain gems are marked with stars in the number and arrangement of the Hyades,[5][4] and Martianus Capella uses it of the sky.[3][6] Symmachus uses it figuratively.[5][6] English stellate comes from its participle stēllātus.[7]

Timeline

  • 96–55 BC – Lucretius has caelō stēllante.[4][8]
  • 70–19 BC – Virgil uses stēllāns of the sky.[4][8]
  • 23/24–79 AD – Pliny the Elder uses the finite verb of gems.[5][4][8]
  • c. 340–402 AD – Symmachus uses it figuratively.[5][8]
  • c. 1500 – English stellate, from the participle stēllātus, is recorded.[7]

Meanings

Verb

  1. (intransitive, mostly in the present participle) To be set with stars;[4][1] stēllāns, starry.[4][1]
  2. (intransitive, transferred) To glitter, gleam.[4]
  3. (transitive) To set with stars, furnish with star-like points of light.[2][3][6]
  4. (figurative) To stud, adorn.[6][5]
  • stēlliō
  • English stellate

Usage notes

Georges and Gaffiot also record stēllō as a spelling of stēlliō, the name of a kind of lizard, cited from the grammarian Caper.[5][3][2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  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 d Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  7. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  8. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
Cite this entry

“Stello.” Etymologically, 21 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/stello. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

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