theorema
Pronunciation
Forms
theōrēma n (genitive theōrēmatis); third declension[1] Gellius has the dative plural theorematis.[2][3]
Etymology
It is borrowed from Ancient Greek θεώρημα (theṓrēma, “spectacle; proposition to be proved”),[3][2][1][4] from θεωρέω (theōréō, “to look at, behold”).[1][4]
Earliest recorded meaning
It is first found in Aulus Gellius (c. 165 AD),[3][5] who describes young men babbling nothing but trifling theoremata, and mentions dialectic and many theorems of that kind.[3]
Semantic evolution
The OLD defines it as a subject for investigation or a problem.[3] Martianus Capella uses it of a proposition to be proved, a theorem,[2] and Ecclesiastical Latin of a theorem or formula.[6] Medieval Latin also used it for a vision or contemplation and for an example worth following.[7] English took theorem in the 1550s, from French and directly from Late Latin.[4]
Timeline
- c. 165 AD – Gellius uses it of philosophical problems.[3][5]
- 5th century AD – Martianus Capella uses it of a proposition to be proved.[2][5]
- 1550s – English borrows it as theorem.[4]
Meanings
Noun
- A subject for investigation, a problem.[3]
- A proposition to be proved, a theorem.[2][6]
- (Medieval Latin) A vision, contemplation.[7]
- (Medieval Latin) An example worth following.[7]
References
- ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ a b c d e f g Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
- ^ a b Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
- ^ a b c Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill