suppeto

Forms

suppetō (present infinitive suppetere, perfect active suppetīvī or suppetiī, supine suppetītum); third conjugation^[1] The spelling subpetō is also found.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is from Latin sub- + petō (“to make for, seek”).^[2][1] The verb petō goes back to Proto-Italic *pet-e/o-;^[4] Wiktionary traces it to Proto-Indo-European *peth₂- (“to fly”).^[1] De Vaan notes that the sense “to fly” is not self-evident and explains it by a shift from flying towards something to trying to get it; the root is usually taken to end in a laryngeal, but a plain root without one would also give the Latin present.^[4] Cognate with Ancient Greek πέτομαι (pétomai, “to fly”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its first example in the OLD is in Plautus, where it means to come up as a support or give backing.^[2]

Semantic evolution

Its main Classical sense is of money, resources and the like, to be at hand when needed or available, as in Plautus' “see that there is material for the shield-makers”.^[2] Lewis & Short take the literal sense as to be at hand or in store, and also give to be equal to or enough for.^[3] Ennius uses it of qualities or conditions, contrasting the toil that deeds supply with what words can tell, and of an idea it is to suggest itself, as in Plautus' “he hardly finds what to do”.^[2] In Ulpian it is a legal term, to ask for something in another's place.^[2] Church Latin glosses it “to be present, be enough, be available, correspond to”.^[5]

Timeline

• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus of support and of material being available.^[2][6]
• 204–169 BC – Ennius of the toil that deeds supply.^[2][6]
• 81–43 BC – Cicero of resources at someone's disposal.^[3][6]
• before 223 AD – Ulpian of asking for something in another's place.^[2][6]

Meanings

Verb

1. To come up as a support, give backing.^[2]
2. To be at hand, be available when needed; of an idea, to suggest itself.^[2][3][1]
3. To be equal to, be sufficient for.^[3][1]
4. (law) To ask for something in another's place.^[2]

Word family

• suppetiae
• suppetium
• suppetiātus
• suppetilis
• suppetior

Related words

• petō
• appetō

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ a b c de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
5. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
6. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de