Latin words first recorded in the 3rd century BC

It is formed from Latin maximus + -ē, the adverb of the superlative “greatest”, and serves as the superlative of magis “more”. De Vaan derives maximus from ⟨*magisVmo-⟩, built on the comparative…

It is from Latin mē (“me”) + Castor (“Castor”), short for a prayer such as “so help me Castor”. The name is Ancient Greek Κάστωρ (Kástōr). Ancient glossaries explain it as ⟨mē ita Castor⟩.

It is from Latin medicō (“to heal”) + -mentum, a noun of means, “that by which one heals”. The verb medicō belongs with medeor (“to heal”), which goes back to Proto-Italic *med-ē- and…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek μέδιμνος (médimnos), a Greek measure of grain. Isidore explained the name as Latin for half, dīmidius, because it holds five modii, half of ten.

It is from Latin mediocris (“moderate”) + -ter. De Vaan explains mediocris as a compound of medius (“middle”) and ocris, a rare word for a hill, first meaning situated half-way up; ocris goes back…

The origin is uncertain. It may be inherited from Proto-Italic *(s)meru-lo-, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *smer-u- (“marrow”), the source de Vaan prefers: it fits the meaning best but needs a…

It is from Latin mē + Herculēs, “by Hercules”. Festus explains it as an oath with “so may Hercules help me” understood; Wiktionary takes it as short for ⟨adiuva mē Hercule⟩.

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *meli, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *mélit (“honey”). Cognate with Old Irish mil (“honey”), Welsh mel (“honey”), Hittite militt- (“honey”), Ancient Greek μέλι…

It is from Latin melius (“better”) + -culus, a diminutive formed on a comparative, like minusculus. For melior (“better”) de Vaan reconstructs Proto-Indo-European *mel-iōs, but he calls this…

It is formed from Latin mendāx (“lying”) + -ium. ⟨Mendāx⟩ belongs with mendum (“fault, blemish”), which de Vaan traces to Proto-Italic *mendo-, perhaps cognate with Old Irish mind (“sign, mark”); he…

The OLD forms it from Latin mendum (“fault, blemish”) + -āx; Wiktionary takes the first sense to have been “faulty”, turned to “deceitful” under the influence of mentior (“to lie”), from which Lewis…

It is from Latin mendīcus (“beggarly; beggar”) + -tās. The OLD derives mendīcus from mendum (“fault, blemish”), which de Vaan traces to Proto-Italic *m(e)ndo-; if Old Irish mind (“sign, mark”) is…

It is from Latin mendīcus (“beggarly; a beggar”) + -ō. The OLD derives mendīcus from mendum (“fault, defect”), and Wiktionary from its variant menda. De Vaan traces mendum to Proto-Italic…

It is from Latin mendum (“fault, blemish”) + -īcus. De Vaan traces mendum to Proto-Italic *m(e)ndo- and compares Old Irish mennar (“blemish”) and Hittite mant- (“something harmful”); a link with a…

It is from Latin mēnstruus + -ālis, from the adjective meaning “monthly”, which is derived from mēnsis (“month”). The noun goes back to Proto-Italic *mēns- (“month, moon”) and Proto-Indo-European…

The suffix is from Latin -men, enlarged, which Wiktionary traces through Proto-Italic *-məntom to Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥tom. Weiss sees in it the substantivized neuter of a possessive adjective…

It is from Latin mereō (“to earn, deserve”), its present participle, used as an adjective. De Vaan traces mereō to Proto-Italic *mer-ē- (“to earn”) and, with a question mark, Proto-Indo-European…

It is from Latin meritum (“desert, merit”), its adverbial ablative, ⟨meritum⟩ being the neuter of meritus, the participle of mereō (“to earn, deserve”). Early inscriptions spell it ⟨meritod⟩…

It is from Latin mereō (“to earn, deserve”), its past participle used as an adjective. De Vaan traces the verb to Proto-Italic *mer-ē- (“to earn”) and, with a query, Proto-Indo-European *(s)mr-eh₁-…

It is from Latin merus (“pure, unmixed”), its neuter, used as a noun. De Vaan traces the adjective to Proto-Italic *mero- and Proto-Indo-European *merH-o- (“remaining, pure”), and follows Puhvel in…

It is from Latin metō (“to reap”) + -tor. De Vaan traces the verb to Proto-Italic *met-e- (“to reap”), comparing Welsh medi (“to mow, harvest”); the further root etymology is disputed.

The origin is uncertain. De Vaan tentatively sets up Proto-Italic *-meti, from Proto-Indo-European *-me-ti (“with”): *me (“with”) with an added *-ti as in aut. Alternatively he thinks of *sme, seen…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *met-e- (“to reap”). De Vaan compares Welsh medi (“to mow, harvest”) and Middle Breton midiff (“to harvest”), and further Lithuanian mèsti (“to throw”) and…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek μετρητής (metrētḗs), literally a “measurer”, from μετρέω (metréō, “to measure”), from μέτρον (métron, “measure”). Köbler compares Proto-Indo-European *meh₁- (“to…

It is from Latin mīlle (“thousand”) + -iēns. De Vaan traces mīlle to Proto-Italic *smīχeslī and Proto-Indo-European *sm-ih₂-ǵʰes-l-ih₂ (“having one thousand”), comparing Sanskrit सहस्र (sahásra-…

1. The Greek weight and coin is borrowed from Ancient Greek μνᾶ (mnâ), which is ultimately of Semitic origin; Köbler compares Hebrew and Babylonian-Assyrian, and Wiktionary traces it through Aramaic…

It is from Latin mināx (“threatening”) + -ia, and so goes back to minae (“threats”).

It is from Latin mināx (“threatening”) + -ter. The adjective is from minae (“threats”), which de Vaan traces to Proto-Italic *men-ā-, first “a part that sticks out” and then “a threat”, from the…

It is formed from Latin minimus (“smallest, least”) + -ē, the superlative adverb beside parum. De Vaan explains minimus as a productive derivative of the comparative stem ⟨*minōs⟩ of minor…

It is from Latin minor (“smaller, less”) + -culus, a diminutive, built on the old ⟨s⟩-final stem of the comparative that is also seen in the neuter minus. De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of…

It is from Latin miser (“wretched”) + -lus, a diminutive. De Vaan traces miser to Proto-Italic *misro- and, with a question mark, Proto-Indo-European *mh2isro-; he notes a possible link with maereō…

It is from Latin miser (“wretched”) + -ē. De Vaan traces miser to Proto-Italic *misro-, perhaps related to maereō (“to grieve”), but finds no acceptable older pedigree.

It is formed from Latin miser (“wretched”) + -eō, the verb ending. De Vaan reconstructs ⟨miser⟩ as Proto-Italic *misro-, perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *mh₂isro-, comparing Tocharian A msär…

It is from Latin misereō (“to pity”) + -ēscō, an inchoative verb. The base verb comes from miser (“wretched”), which de Vaan reconstructs as Proto-Italic *misro-, perhaps from Proto-Indo-European…

It is formed from Latin miser (“wretched”) + -or, the verb suffix. De Vaan traces ⟨miser⟩ to Proto-Italic *misro- and, with a query, Proto-Indo-European *mh₂isro-, comparing Tocharian A msär…

It is from Latin modestus (“restrained, moderate”) + -ē. De Vaan derives modestus from the s-stem beside modus (“measure”), which he traces to Proto-Italic *medo- (“measure, judgement”) and…

It is formed from Latin modus (“measure”) + -ius, perhaps with a word for “vessel” understood. The TLL compares Greek μέδιμνος (médimnos, “medimnus, a grain measure”). De Vaan traces ⟨modus⟩ to…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek μοιχός (moikhós, “adulterer”). Köbler mentions, with a question mark, Pokorny's root Proto-Indo-European *meyǵʰ- (“to urinate”) for the Greek word.

It is formed from Latin molestus (“troublesome”) + -ia. De Vaan, following Schrijver, derives ⟨molestus⟩ from an s-stem Proto-Italic *meles- (“trouble, obstacle”), Proto-Indo-European *mel-e/os-…

It is related to mōlēs (“mass, burden; effort”) and formed like modestus. De Vaan, following Schrijver, derives it from ⟨*melesto-⟩, built on a lost neuter s-stem ⟨*melos⟩ “trouble, obstacle”…

It is formed from Latin mōlēs (“mass, bulk; great effort”). De Vaan sets up a Proto-Italic noun or adjective ⟨*mōlo-⟩ “labour, effort” with a verb ⟨*mōl-i-je-⟩ “to labour”; since ⟨mōlēs⟩ is attested…

It is from Latin mollis (“soft”) + -culus, a diminutive. De Vaan derives the adjective from an older u-stem, going back to Proto-Italic *moldu- and Proto-Indo-European *ml̥d-u- (“soft”). Cognate…

It is the adverb from Latin mollis (“soft”) + -ter. De Vaan traces ⟨mollis⟩ to Proto-Italic *moldu-(i-) and Proto-Indo-European *ml̥d-u- (“soft”), cognate with Sanskrit मृदु (mṛdú-, “soft…

It is from Latin mollis (“soft”) + -itia. De Vaan traces mollis through ⟨*molwi-⟩ and ⟨*moldu̯i-⟩ to Proto-Italic *moldu-(i-) and Proto-Indo-European *ml̥d-u- (“soft”), an old u-stem adjective…

The origin is uncertain. The OLD compares ficēdula (“fig-pecker”), a bird name with the same ending. The ancients took it as “money-eater”, from monēta (“money”) and edō (“to eat”), because of the…

It is formed from Latin moneō (“to remind, warn”) + -mentum. De Vaan traces moneō to Proto-Italic *moneje- and Proto-Indo-European *mon-eie- (“to make think of, remind”), a causative of…

1. The word for “delay” is inherited from Proto-Italic *morH-ā- (“delay”), inherited from Proto-Indo-European *morh₂-. Its vowel is a difficulty: if /o/ regularly became /a/ in an open syllable…

It is from Latin mordeō (“to bite”) + -āx (“inclined to”). De Vaan traces mordeō to Proto-Italic *mord-eje- and Proto-Indo-European *h₂mord-(e)ie- (“to crush, bite”), an iterative present. Cognate…

It is from Latin morior (“to die”) + -bundus. De Vaan traces morior to Proto-Italic *morje- (“to die”) and Proto-Indo-European *mr̥-ye/o- (“to die”), comparing Sanskrit म्रियते (mriyáte, “dies”) and…

1. The word for “hard to please” is from Latin mōs (“custom, (plural) character”) + -ōsus. The ways implied are bad ones: a mōrōsus person is full of awkward habits. 2. The word for “lingering” is…

Its origin is uncertain. The OLD thinks it perhaps related to Sanskrit मृणाति (mr̥ṇāti, “crushes”) and Ancient Greek μαραίνω (maraínō, “to quench, destroy”). De Vaan suggests a noun Proto-Italic…

1. The adjective “foolish” is borrowed from Ancient Greek μωρός (mōrós, “foolish”). 2. The tree is from Latin mōrum (“mulberry”), which the TLL compares with mālus (“apple tree”) and mālum…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *moks, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *moḱs (“soon”). De Vaan leaves open whether the PIE word was a locative plural in ⟨*-su⟩ or a u-stem, and calls the root…

It is formed from Latin mūceō (“to be mouldy”) + -idus, and mūceō is a derivative of mūcus (“mucus, snot”). For the noun de Vaan reconstructs Proto-Indo-European *(s)me/ouk-o- (“snot”), beside the…

Its origin is not certain. Wiktionary takes it as inherited from Proto-Italic *moukos, from Proto-Indo-European *mew-k- (“slimy, slippery”), the root Köbler gives as *meug-. The OLD and de Vaan…

It is probably related to mulceō (“to stroke, caress”). De Vaan finds it hard to derive from that verb's stem ⟨*molk-eje-⟩ and suggests that it is from Proto-Italic *molkā- (“a stroke”), a noun…

It is formed from Latin mulier (“woman”) + -ris (from an older stem in ⟨-s-⟩), as in fūnebris (“funereal”); de Vaan takes it as proof that ⟨mulier⟩ was once an s-stem. Wiktionary sets up…

It is from Latin mulier (“woman”) + -cula, a diminutive. De Vaan shows from muliebris that mulier was originally an s-stem; the older view takes it as a comparative of the stem of mollis (“soft”)…

It is from Latin mūlus (“mule”) + -iō. De Vaan traces mūlus to Proto-Italic *musklo- or ⟨*mukslo-⟩ and thinks it a loanword that reached Europe from Asia Minor; he compares Ancient Greek μύκλος…

It is from Latin mulsus (“mixed with honey”), the neuter of that adjective used as a noun with vīnum (“wine”) understood. De Vaan lists both the adjective and the noun under mel (“honey”), from…