supervacaneus

Forms

supervacāneus (feminine supervacānea, neuter supervacāneum); first/second-declension adjective^[1] It is also spelled ⟨supervacuāneus⟩, in Cicero's De natura deorum and in Sallust.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is from Latin super- (“over, above”) + vacō (“to be empty”) + -āneus.^[2] Lewis and Short and Georges take the second part from vacuus (“empty”).^[4][5] De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of vacō, which goes back to Proto-Italic *wako- (“empty”) and Proto-Indo-European *h₁uh₂-ko-.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Köbler and de Vaan date it from Cato,^[7][6] whose farm manual lists spare presses and windlasses for the press room, extra to those in use.^[2][4]

Semantic evolution

Its first sense is additional or spare.^[2][5] Cicero's supervacanea opera is work done in spare hours, as in the De senectute.^[4][3] More often it means superfluous or redundant:^[2][8] Cicero uses it of whatever in a tree is superfluous and has no use, Sallust writes that it is needless to discuss something, and Livy uses it of a useless speech and of a consul held to be superfluous.^[2][3][5] Of letters and other acts it means needless, serving no purpose, as when Cicero fears that his letters will be thought unnecessary.^[2][4]

Ecclesiastical Latin used it for superfluous,^[9] and British medieval writers for superfluous, redundant and needless.^[10]

Timeline

• 234–149 BC – Cato uses it of spare equipment for a press room.^[2][7]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of superfluous things and needless letters.^[2][7]
• 86–34 BC – Sallust uses the form supervacuāneus.^[2][7]
• 59 BC–17 AD – Livy uses it of a useless speech.^[5][7]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Additional to what is in use, extra, spare.^[2][4]
2. More than is required, superfluous, redundant.^[2][8]
3. (of actions) Unnecessary, serving no purpose.^[2][4]

Related words

• supervacuus
• vacuus
• vacō

References

1. ^ a b c 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 Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
4. ^ a b c d e f Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
6. ^ 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
7. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
8. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
9. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
10. ^ Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press