vacuo

Pronunciation

• IPA (Classical): [ˈwa.ku.oː]^[1]
• IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈvaː.ku.o]^[1]

Forms

vacuō (present infinitive vacuāre, perfect active vacuāvī, supine vacuātum); first conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin vacuus (“empty”) + -ō.^[2][1] De Vaan reconstructs a Proto-Italic adjective ⟨*wako-⟩ “empty”, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁uh₂-ko-, behind vacō and ⟨vacuus⟩, with Umbrian ⟨anter.vakaze⟩ “let there be an interruption” as a cognate.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is Lucretius, of emptying.^[2][4] Köbler dates Lucretius 96–55 BC.^[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant to empty, clear, void, as in Lucretius and Columella, and in Martial to clear a place or household of people, and Lewis & Short call it mostly post-Augustan.^[2][6][4]

In Ecclesiastical Latin it means to make empty, empty, void.^[7]

Timeline

• 96–55 BC – Lucretius uses it.^[2][5]
• 1st century AD – Columella uses it.^[4][5]
• 40–102/103 AD – Martial uses it of clearing a place.^[2][5]

Meanings

Verb

1. To empty, clear.^[2][6]
2. To clear (a place) of people.^[2]

Related words

• vacuus
• ēvacuō
• vacō
• English evacuate

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
4. ^ a b c Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
5. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
6. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson