tridens

Forms

tridēns (genitive tridentis); third-declension one-termination adjective^[1]

Etymology

It is a compound from Latin tri- + dēns, “having three teeth”.^[2][3][4] De Vaan traces dēns (“tooth”) to Proto-Italic *dent- and Proto-Indo-European *h₃d-nt- (“tooth”).^[5] The noun “trident” is the adjective used substantively.^[2][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Virgil (70–19 BC) is the first author with it:^[4] in the Aeneid it describes the three-pronged beaks of ships,^[7][8][9] and in the Georgics it names Neptune's trident.^[8][9]

Semantic evolution

As an adjective the word stayed mostly poetic: Valerius Flaccus also uses it of a ship's beak.^[7][8] As a noun it was the three-pronged spear used in fishing,^[2][10] which Pliny the Elder mentions,^[2] the attribute of Neptune in Ovid,^[8][9] and the weapon of the gladiator called retiarius.^[2][8] The Vulgate uses it of a three-pronged fork,^[10][11] and medieval British writers applied it figuratively too.^[11] English trident comes from the noun.^[6]

Timeline

• 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it of ships' beaks and of Neptune's trident.^[8][9][4]
• 43 BC–18 AD – Ovid uses it of Neptune's trident.^[8][9][4]
• 23/24–79 AD – Pliny the Elder uses it for a fishing spear.^[2][4]
• c. 67–c. 127 AD – Juvenal uses it of the weapon of a retiarius.^[8][9][4]
• mid-15th century – English trident is recorded, from this word.^[6]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Having three prongs or teeth, three-pronged.^[2][7][8]

Noun

1. A three-pronged spear used in fishing, a harpoon.^[2][8][9]
2. The trident of Neptune.^[8][9]
3. The weapon of a rētiārius.^[2][8]

Word family

• tridentifer
• tridentiger
• tridentipotens

Related words

• dēns
• English trident

Usage notes

The ablative singular is usually tridente, but poets sometimes use tridenti at the end of a line.^[8][7]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ Bianchi, Rossella; Lelli, Olga (2014), VOLI: Vocabolario di latino, Florence: Le Monnier
4. ^ a b c d e f Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
5. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
6. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ a b c d Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
9. ^ a b c d e f g h Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
10. ^ a b Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
11. ^ a b Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press