tongeo

Forms

tongeō (present infinitive tongēre); second conjugation, no perfect or supine stems^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *tong-eje- (“to know”).^[2] De Vaan suggests that it continues an Indo-European present with ⟨-i̯e-⟩ and the o-grade of the root, Proto-Indo-European *tong-ei(e)- (“to think, know”), since its meaning is stative rather than iterative;^[2] Wiktionary gives the root as *teng- (“to think”).^[1] The ⟨o⟩ stayed before the velar nasal, where it would usually have become ⟨u⟩, because of the preceding dental, as in domus.^[2]

Cognate with Oscan tanginom (“opinion, decision”) (accusative),^[2][3] Old English ðencan (“to think”), Old High German denchen (“to think”) and Old Norse þekkja (“to understand, know”).^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

It survives only in Festus (in the epitome), who explains it as “to know”, adds that the people of Praeneste call a notion tongitiō, and quotes Ennius: alii rhetorica tongent (“others know rhetoric”).^[3][2][4]

Semantic evolution

No other use is recorded; the dictionaries know it only from this gloss of Festus and its quotation of Ennius.^[3][4][5] It has no perfect or supine.^[1]

Timeline

• 204–169 BC – Ennius uses the form tongent.^[3][6]
• 2nd half of the 2nd century AD – Festus explains the word.^[3][5][6]

Meanings

Verb

1. To know.^[3][4][1]

Word family

• tongitiō

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f 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 Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ a b c Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
5. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
6. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de