Latin words first recorded in the 2nd century BC

It is from Latin genū (“knee”) + -culum, a diminutive. The base goes back to Proto-Italic *genū and Proto-Indo-European *ǵen-u- (“knee”).

The origin is uncertain. It ends in the noun suffix -iēs, and the first part has traditionally been compared with gelū (“frost”), from Proto-Indo-European *gel- (“cold; to freeze”); Etymonline takes…

It is from Latin glomus (“ball of thread”) + -ō, a denominal verb. De Vaan traces glomus to Proto-Italic *glemos and Proto-Indo-European *glem-o/es-, and explains the ⟨o⟩ as a Latin change after a…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek γλῶσσα (glôssa, “tongue, language”). Köbler compares a root Proto-Indo-European *glōgʰ- (“point, prick”). Isidore of Seville explains that the word takes its name…

It is from Latin gradus (“step”) + -ātim, an adverb of manner. De Vaan lists it among the words built on the stem ⟨grad-⟩ of gradior (“to step, walk”) and the noun.

It is from Latin grex (“flock, herd”) + -ātim. De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of grex, which goes back to Proto-Italic *gʷreg- and Proto-Indo-European *gʷreg- (“group, herd”).

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek ἁρμονικός (harmonikós), from ἁρμονία (harmonía, “joining, fitting”).

It is from Latin herba (“grass, herb”) + -idus. The TLL compares flōridus, formed in the same way. De Vaan rejects the older reconstruction Proto-Indo-European *gʰer-dʰ- for the noun and finds no…

It is from Latin hībernus (“of winter”), its neuter plural, used as a noun, short for ⟨castra hīberna⟩ “winter camp”. De Vaan derives ⟨hībernus⟩ from ⟨*heimrinos⟩, from the noun hiems (“winter”)…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek ἱπποπόταμος (hippopótamos), from ἵππος (híppos, “horse”) and ποταμός (potamós, “river”). Etymonline calls the Greek word an irregular formation from the earlier…

Its origin is uncertain. It is perhaps inherited from Proto-Italic *hōrnos, from earlier *hojōrnos, and most scholars explain it as a derivative of a phrase meaning “this year”, made of the pronoun…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek ὡρολόγιον (hōrológion, “instrument telling the hour”). The Greek word is formed from ὥρα (hṓra, “season, hour”) and λέγω (légō, “to say, tell”).

It is from Latin humus (“earth, ground”) + -ō. De Vaan traces humus to Proto-Italic *χomo- and Proto-Indo-European *dʰǵʰ-ōm (“earth”), comparing Oscan húnttram (“who is below”); the TLL compares…

It is formed from Latin impōnō (“to place on, impose”) + -tiō.

It is an agent noun formed from Latin impōnō (“to place upon”) + -tor.

It is from Latin inaequālis (“uneven, unequal”) + -tās. The adjective is a compound of in- (“not”) and aequālis (“equal”), which de Vaan lists from Plautus on among the derivatives of aequus…

It is from Latin in- + ārēscō (“to become dry”), the inchoative of āreō (“to be dry”). De Vaan traces that verb to Proto-Italic *ās-ē- (“to be dry”) and Proto-Indo-European *h₂eh₁s-eh₁- (“to be dry”).

It is from Latin incinō (“to strike up a tune”) + -īvus, from in- and canō (“to sing”). The DMLBS notes that the musical use had died out in Late Latin and that the word was then associated with the…

The origin is disputed. Most scholars connect it with Ancient Greek κυέω (kuéō, “to be pregnant”) and analyse it as a derivative of the root Proto-Indo-European *ḱuH- (“to swell”), but the formal…

It is from Latin in- + canō (“to sing”). De Vaan traces canō to Proto-Italic *kan-e(je)- and Proto-Indo-European *kh₂n-e- (“to sing”), noting that scholars do not agree on the form of the…

It is from Latin indāgō (“to track down, investigate”) + -bilis. The reverse sense “not to be found” of some medieval texts arose by confusion with the negative prefix in-.

It is from Latin in- + discrētus (“separated, distinct”), the negative prefix with the past participle of discernō (“to separate, distinguish”). That verb is a compound of cernō (“to sift…

It is from Latin in- + hospitālis (“relating to guests, hospitable”), with the negative prefix. The adjective is formed from hospes (“guest, host”), which de Vaan explains as a compound of hostis…

It is from Latin īnsānus (“insane, unsound”) + -itās. The adjective is formed from in- (“not”) and sānus (“sound, healthy”), which goes back to Proto-Italic *sāno- and a reconstructed…

The origin is uncertain; the OLD calls it doubtful and Wiktionary obscure. Lewis and Short and Walde–Hofmann connect it with in- and the root of stō (“to stand”), as if “to stand in” and so…

It is from Latin inter (“between”) + medius (“middle”). The TLL marks the word as doubtful and derives it, if it is genuine, from the phrase ⟨inter medium⟩ “in the middle”; Georges reads two of the…

It is from Latin iocus (“joke”) + -ōsus. De Vaan traces iocus to Proto-Italic *joko- and Proto-Indo-European *iok-o- (“word, utterance”), comparing Umbrian iuka (“words, prayers”) and Old High…

It is from Latin irrigō (“to water, irrigate”) + -tiō, a noun of action. The verb is from Latin rigō (“to water”) with the prefix in-; de Vaan considers the compound older than the simple verb and…

It is from Latin iuvencus (“young bullock”), used as a feminine noun. Wiktionary suggests that it may rather continue a Proto-Italic *juwenkā beside the masculine. De Vaan traces iuvencus to…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek λάβδα (lábda), a form of λάμβδα (lámbda).

It is from Latin lac (“milk”) + -ūca, with the ending of plant names such as ērūca (“rocket”). Wiktionary explains the name from the milky juice of cut lettuce stems. De Vaan traces lac to…

The OLD takes it as borrowed from Ancient Greek χλαῖνα (khlaîna, “cloak”), perhaps passing through Etruscan, and Köbler also refers it to the Greek word, itself a loanword of unknown origin. The TLL…

It is from Latin lapis (“stone”) + -ōsus. De Vaan reconstructs Proto-Italic *la/eped- for lapis, compares Ancient Greek λέπας (lépas, “bare rock”), and thinks it probably a Mediterranean loanword.

It is from Latin lapis (“stone”) + -lus, a diminutive. Wiktionary thinks it was probably formed on the stem ⟨lapid-⟩. De Vaan reconstructs Proto-Italic *la/eped- for lapis and compares Umbrian…

It is from Latin later (“brick”) + -icius. De Vaan finds the origin of the noun unclear; if its first meaning was “piece, part”, it may be related to latus (“side”).

It is from Latin leō (“lion”), a feminine made to it. leō is itself from Ancient Greek λέων (léōn, “lion”).

It is usually taken as from Latin legō (“to gather”) + -men. The derivation goes back to Varro, who says that pulses are pulled from the earth and not cut, and are named because they are gathered in…

Wiktionary takes it as borrowed from Ancient Greek λείριον (leírion, “lily”). De Vaan and the OLD think rather that the Latin and the Greek word were both borrowed from a non-Indo-European language…

It is from Latin lōrīca (“cuirass, corselet”) + -ō. De Vaan lists it with lōrīca among the derivatives of lōrum (“thong, strap”), and notes that a separate loan etymology is often proposed for the…

It is from Latin lūna (“moon”) + -āris.

It is formed from Latin lūdō (“to play”) + -tus of action nouns. De Vaan traces ⟨lūdō⟩ to Proto-Italic *loid-e/o- (“to play”) and Proto-Indo-European *loid- (“to let go often, play”), cognate with…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *udrā-, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *ud-ro-, an adjective meaning “of the water” that came to name a water animal, the otter. The change of PIE /dr/ to Latin…

It is formed from Latin magnus + -tūdō, from the adjective for “great”. De Vaan derives magnus from Proto-Italic *magno-, from Proto-Indo-European *m̥ǵ-no- (“great”). The root is *meǵh₂- (“great”).

It is probably a borrowing from a Mediterranean language, perhaps a Semitic one: de Vaan compares Biblical Hebrew מַלּוּחַ (mallū́aḥ, “saltbush”) and points to the varying vowels of Ancient Greek…

It is from Latin mamma (“breast; mother”), with the diminutive suffix -ula. The TLL connects Spanish mambla with it.

It is a compound from Latin manus (“hand”) + suēscō (“to become accustomed”) (from the stem of ⟨manus⟩), literally “to accustom to the hand”. The TLL compares cōnsuēscō. De Vaan traces suēscō to…

It is formed from Latin Mārs + -ālis. The personal name is the same adjective used as a cognomen.

It is from Latin masculus (“male”) + -īnus. The TLL compares fēminīnus (“female”), and Etymonline suggests the diminutive base may have been chosen to pair with it. The base is a diminutive of mās…

It is formed from Latin māter + -ix. The OLD suggests that the ending may have been taken from nūtrīx (“nurse”), and the TLL compares genetrīx and similar words. Its base goes back to Proto-Italic…

It is from Latin mātūrus (“ripe”) + -ēscō, an inchoative verb. De Vaan traces mātūrus to a noun Proto-Italic *mātu- (“ripeness”), from Proto-Indo-European *meh₂-tu- (“ripeness”).

1. The word for the clover is borrowed from Ancient Greek Μηδική (Mēdikḗ, “Median (grass)”), named after Μηδία (Mēdía, “Media”), the country from which the plant was brought. 2. The word for the…

It is from Latin mediocris (“moderate, middling”) + -tās. De Vaan explains mediocris as a compound of medius “middle” with ocris “hilltop”, first meaning “halfway up the summit”; ocris goes back to…

It is from Latin medius (“middle”) + terra (“land”) + -āneus. Wiktionary treats it as a calque of Ancient Greek μεσόγαιος (mesógaios, “inland”), and the TLL compares that word and subterrāneus. De…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek μελίμηλον (melímēlon, “honey apple”), from μέλι (méli, “honey”) and μῆλον (mêlon, “apple”).

It is from Latin mel (“honey”) + -ītus, “honeyed”. De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of mel, which goes back to Proto-Italic *meli and Proto-Indo-European *mel-i(-t) (“honey”).

It is from Latin membrum (“limb, part of the body”) + -āna. An ancient commentator on Lucan and Isidore explained the name from its covering the limbs. De Vaan traces membrum to Proto-Italic…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *m(e)ndo-. If Old Irish mind (“sign, mark”) belongs here, the word is an Italo-Celtic one; and if the first meaning was “sign, mark”, de Vaan suggests it might come…

It is formed from Latin mēnsis (“month”) + -uus, on a stem ⟨*mēnstr-⟩, seen in bimēnstris (“of two months”), the suffix as in annuus (“yearly”). De Vaan traces mēnsis to Proto-Italic *mēns- (“month…

It is from Latin mīlle (“thousand”) + -ārius. De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of mīlle, first found in Varro.

It is formed from Latin minūtus (“small”) + -ātim, the adverb suffix. That participle belongs to minuō (“to lessen”), which de Vaan traces to a nasal present Proto-Indo-European *mi-n(e)-h₁- (“to…