suscito

Forms

suscitō (present infinitive suscitāre, perfect active suscitāvī, supine suscitātum); first conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin sub- (“up from under”) + citō (“to set in motion”).^[2][3][1] De Vaan explains citō as the frequentative that replaced the old verb cieō (“to stir, move”), which goes back to a participle Proto-Italic *kito- (“stirred”) and an aorist Proto-Indo-European *(ḱ)ei(h₂)- (“to start to move”).^[4] Cognate with Ancient Greek κίνυμαι (kínumai, “to be moved”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's first examples are in Ennius, of augurs who stir up invented opinions for gain, and in Plautus' Miles Gloriosus: “some crimes are stirring you up”.^[2] Accius uses it of a ship raising whirlpools.^[2]

Semantic evolution

It means to make something or someone rise: to rouse from a resting position, to start an animal from its lair, and in Cicero to call a witness to stand up in court.^[2] Of things it is to throw up earth or water, as Virgil's ridges of earth thrown up, to prick up the ears, and to raise a building, as Lucretius' new temples set up all over the world.^[2][3] It means to wake from sleep or from a sickbed, to rouse to action, as Virgil's Turnus rousing men to arms, and to awaken feelings, fire or a breeze.^[2]

Church Latin glosses it to awaken, raise up, stir up, erect, encourage.^[5] English borrowed suscitate in the 1520s.^[6]

Timeline

• 204–169 BC – Ennius of stirring up invented opinions.^[2][7]
• c. 250–184 BC – Plautus of crimes stirring a person up.^[2][7]
• 170–c. 90 BC – Accius of a ship raising whirlpools.^[2][7]
• 96–55 BC – Lucretius of temples raised.^[2][7]
• 70–19 BC – Virgil of Turnus rousing men to arms.^[2][7]
• 1520s – Borrowed into English as suscitate.^[6]

Meanings

Verb

1. To make rise from lying or sitting; to start an animal from its lair; to call a witness to stand up.^[2][3]
2. To throw up earth or water; to prick up the ears; to raise, erect a building.^[2][3][1]
3. To rouse from sleep or sickness; to rouse to action.^[2][3][1]
4. To awaken feelings or ideas; to kindle a fire; to swell a sail.^[2][3][1]

Word family

• exsuscitō
• resuscitō
• suscitābulum
• suscitatio
• suscitator

Related words

• resuscitō
• citō
• English suscitate

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 m n o Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ 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
5. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
6. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de