Etymologically

vomito

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 23 October 2026 at 12:21. This address is a permanent link to this version.

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [ˈwɔ.mɪ.toː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [ˈvɔː.mi.to][1]

Forms

vomitō (present infinitive vomitāre, perfect active vomitāvī, supine vomitātum); first conjugation, impersonal in the passive[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin vomō (“to vomit”) + -itō, a frequentative.[2][3][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Columella uses it of livestock that vomit when seized by nausea.[3][4][5]

Semantic evolution

Seneca set the drunken, vomiting crowd against the dry and sober man,[3] and Suetonius tells of Vitellius' habit of vomiting (cōnsuētūdō vomitandī) so that he could keep feasting.[3][4] Etymonline traces English vomit to vomitus, from this verb.[6]

Timeline

  • 1st century AD – Columella uses it of sick animals.[3][5]
  • 4 BC–65 AD – Seneca uses it of a drunken crowd.[3][5]
  • c. 75–c. 150 AD – Suetonius uses it of Vitellius.[3][5]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To vomit often or repeatedly.[2][4][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  4. ^ a b c Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  6. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com