tamen
This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 18 October 2026 at 21:37. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Pronunciation
Forms
tamen (not comparable)[1]
Etymology
It is formed from tam (“so”) with a particle ⟨-em⟩, as in īdem: ⟨*tam-em⟩.[2][1][3] The parallel ⟨*tam-dem⟩ gave tandem.[2][1] The adverb ⟨tam⟩ goes back to Proto-Indo-European *teh₂m.[2]
Earliest recorded meaning
It is found from Livius Andronicus on.[2]
Semantic evolution
Tamen means “all the same, nevertheless”: it stands alone, after a concessive clause (quamquam … tamen “although … yet”), after et, sed or at, or anticipates a concession.[3][4] In a clause of limitation with ut or nē it means “at least”, and in a conditional clause “if only, provided that”.[3][1]
It usually comes second in its clause but can also stand first or last.[1]
Timeline
- c. 280–200 BC – First found in Livius Andronicus.[2]
- c. 235–200 BC – Naevius uses at tamen.[3][5]
- c. 250–184 BC – Plautus: quamquam ego sum sordidātus, frūgī tamen sum.[3][5]
Meanings
Adverb
- nevertheless, however, all the same.[3][4]
- (after a concessive clause) Yet, still: quamquam … tamen, although … yet.[3][4]
- Just the same (in spite of appearances).[3][1]
- (with ut or nē) At least;[3][1] (in a conditional clause) if only.[3][1]
Word family
- attamen
- vērumtamen
- tamenetsī
Related words
- tam
- tandem
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b c Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de