Etymologically
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tollo

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [ˈtɔl.loː][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈtɔl.lo][1]

Forms

tollō (present infinitive tollere, perfect active sustulī, supine sublātum); third conjugation[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *tolnō, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *tl̥-né-h₂- (“to lift, carry”), a nasal present of the root *telh₂- “to bear”.[2][1] The nasal present *toln- became toll- by assimilation.[2] Cognate with Ancient Greek τάλας (tálas, “enduring, wretched”), Venetic tolar (“offers”) and Umbrian andendu (“let him set up”).[2][3] tolerō “to bear” and the perfect tulī of ferō belong to the same root.[1][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

De Vaan dates it from the Twelve Tables.[2] A law attributed to the kings forbids lifting a man killed by lightning above the knees.[3] Köbler dates the Twelve Tables to about 450 BC.[4]

Semantic evolution

It meant to pick up from the ground, and of a father to lift a newborn child as a sign that he acknowledged and would raise it.[3] It also meant to raise, lift or hoist, to climb up, and to raise dust into the air.[3] From picking up came to take on board, to carry off or remove, to steal, and to get rid of a person or a thing, often by killing or destroying.[3] Its perfect sustulī and supine sublātum are shared with sufferō.[3]

It survives in Italian togliere (“to take away”) and Portuguese tolher (“to hinder”).[1] Its compound extollō gave English extol.[5]

Timeline

  • c. 450 BC – the Twelve Tables use it.[2][4]
  • c. 250–184 BC – Plautus has someone pick up a flask.[3][4]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero has thieves start to lift a candelabrum.[6][4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To pick up, lift.[3]
  2. (of a father) To acknowledge (a newborn child).[3]
  3. To raise, hoist.[3]
  4. To take on board; to carry off, remove.[3]
  5. To steal.[3]
  6. To get rid of; to kill; to destroy, abolish.[3]

Word family

  • abstollō
  • attollō
  • circumtollō
  • contollō
  • extollō
  • intollō
  • protollō
  • retollō
  • sublātiō
  • supertollō
  • sustollō
  • tolūtim
  • tollēnō
  • ferō
  • English extol

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ 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
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  5. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.