Latin words first recorded in the 3rd century BC

It is from Latin frōns (“foliage”) + -fer (“bearing”), the second part from ferō (“to bear”). De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of the noun. He calls the origin of that noun unclear: an old…

It is from ⟨*fulg-men⟩, formed from Latin fulgeō (“to flash, lighten”) + -men, with ⟨*-lgm-⟩ simplified to ⟨-lm-⟩. De Vaan calls its derivation from the verb certain, and traces fulgō to…

It is from Latin gānea (“eating-house, low tavern”) + -ō, or from gāneum, the same noun. De Vaan takes this noun to be probably a loanword and compares a West Semitic word for “garden”, the source…

It is probably inherited from Proto-Italic *jemno- (“paired”), inherited from Proto-Indo-European *yemH-no- (“paired, connected”). The comparison rests on the meaning and on Old Irish emon (“twin”)…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *genti-, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁-ti- (“birth, offspring”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“to beget”), the root of gignō and genus. De Vaan…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *genos, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os (“race, offspring”), from the root Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“to beget, produce”), the root of gignō and…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *ges-e/o-, and de Vaan follows the old proposal deriving it from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ǵ-es- (“to carry”), an s-extension of the root of agō. Cognate with Faliscan…

It is from Latin glōriōsus (“glorious; boastful”) + -ē, an adverb. That adjective is formed from glōria (“glory”), which some scholars connect with gnārus (“knowing”) through Proto-Italic *gnōria…

Its origin is unknown. Its r-stem is hard to explain from any known Proto-Indo-European type, and the geminate ⟨tt⟩ either marks an expressive word or continues *gūtur. De Vaan notes that gula…

It is a diminutive, related to haruspex (“diviner who inspects entrails”), perhaps from Proto-Italic *χario-. De Vaan suggests it is based on a stem ⟨*hari-⟩ or on ⟨*haro-⟩, which became ⟨*hario-⟩…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek ἡμισφαίριον (hēmisphaírion), from ἡμι- (hēmi-, “half”) and σφαῖρα (sphaîra, “ball, sphere”).

It is the name of Herculēs used as an oath, from Ancient Greek Ἡρακλῆς (Hēraklês). The OLD explains it as apparently the vocative of a by-form ⟨*Hēraklos⟩ of the Greek name. Lewis & Short and…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *χes-i, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰdi-es (“yesterday”). Cognate with Sanskrit ह्यस् (hyás), Ancient Greek χθές (khthés), Albanian dje, Old Irish indé…

It is a compound from Latin hōc (“this”) + diēs (“day”), “on this day”. The second part probably continues an old ablative *diēd. Cognate with Faliscan foied (“today”). Isidore explains it the same…

De Vaan explains it from ⟨*hoi-ke⟩, from Latin hic (“this”) + -ce, its old locative, or perhaps from ⟨*hou-ke⟩ (Nussbaum). The demonstrative goes back to a deictic stem Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰe-.

It is formed from Latin ibī (“there”) + -dem, the particle of īdem (“the same”), itidem and tantundem. De Vaan traces ⟨ibī⟩ to Proto-Italic *iþei and Proto-Indo-European *h1i-dhei (“there”), with a…

It is formed from Latin ignāvus (“idle, cowardly”) + -ia. ⟨Ignāvus⟩ is the negative of gnāvus (“busy, active”), which de Vaan traces to Proto-Italic *gnāwo- and Proto-Indo-European *ǵn(e)h₃-wo-…

It is from Latin in- + gnōtus, with the negative prefix and ⟨gnōtus⟩, the old form of nōtus “known”; compare ignārus and Ancient Greek ἄγνωστος (ágnōstos, “unknown”). Cicero notes that the ⟨i⟩ is…

It is a fusion of the phrase ⟨*in stlocō⟩ “in the place”, from Latin in (“in”) + locus (“place”). De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of locus, whose older form was ⟨stlocus⟩; the further origin…

It is formed from Latin illim (“from there”) + -ce, the particle, like hinc and istinc. ⟨Illim⟩ belongs to the pronoun ille (“that”), which de Vaan says replaced older olle.

It is from Latin ille (“that”), its ablative masculine singular used as an adverb of direction; the TLL connects it with illic, comparing illūc (“thither”) and the pair ⟨hōc⟩, hūc (“hither”).

The origin is uncertain. An ablative ⟨*īmō⟩ of īmus “lowest, last” would suit the sense, but not the short first syllable and double ⟨m⟩, unless the negative force of the word caused the doubling…

It is a denominative verb from Latin in- + mola (“sacrificial meal”), “to sprinkle with meal”. The noun mola (“millstone; salted meal”) belongs to molō (“to grind”), which goes back to…

The explanation is disputed. Walde and Hofmann and Meiser take it as a remodelling of īnfimus “lowest” after summus “highest”; de Vaan suggests a sound change *infimos > *infmos > *immos > īmus…

The origin is unknown. De Vaan notes that the sense “empty, devoid of” is attested before “hollow”, and so is probably older. Wiktionary mentions a possible compound of in- (“not”) and an unknown…

It is from Latin in- + clutus (“famous”), the participle of clueō “to be spoken of”. De Vaan traces ⟨clueō⟩ to Proto-Italic *klu-ē- (“to be known”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱlu-tó- (“heard…

It is from Latin indignus (“unworthy”) + -ē. De Vaan lists dignus (“worthy”) under decet (“it is fitting”) and traces it to Proto-Italic *dek-no- (“worthy”) and Proto-Indo-European *deḱ-no-.

It is formed from Latin in- (“not”) + ars (“skill, art”), as sollers (“skilful”) is from ⟨sollus⟩ and ⟨ars⟩. De Vaan traces ⟨ars⟩ to Proto-Italic *arti- and Proto-Indo-European *h₂r-tí- (“the…

It is from Latin in- (“in”) + gignō (“to beget”) + -ium, with the root of the verb, so “what is inborn”. Gignō goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“to beget”).

It is from Latin in- + gurges (“whirlpool, abyss”), a verb meaning to put “into the whirlpool”. De Vaan suggests that gurges may be a reduplicated formation from the Indo-European root meaning “to…

The OLD derives it from Latin iniūria (“injustice”) + -ius, and Wiktionary and Georges take it as in- “not” and iūs “right, law”.

It is from Latin in- + nocēns (“harmful, guilty”), with the negative prefix and ⟨nocēns⟩, the participle of noceō “to harm”. Plautus has the genitive plural ⟨innocentum⟩, Cicero ⟨innocentium⟩.

It is from Latin in- (“not”) + sepultus (“buried”), the negative of the participle of sepeliō (“to bury”). De Vaan traces sepeliō to Proto-Italic *sepel-je/o- (“to bury”) and Proto-Indo-European…

It is from Latin in- (“in, on”) + sīdō (“to sit down, settle”). De Vaan traces sīdō to Proto-Italic *sizd-e/o- (“to sit down”) and the reduplicated Proto-Indo-European *si-sd-e/o- (“to sit down”)…

The origin is disputed. An old explanation takes it from in and salum “the sea”, “what is in the sea”; de Vaan finds this possible in form but a poor description of an island, especially as…

It is formed from Latin in- (“in”) + sum (“to be”).

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *n̥tagro- (“untouched”), from in- (“not”) and the root Proto-Indo-European *teh₂g- (“to touch”) of tangō. It was formed from the old aorist stem *tag-, seen in Old…

It is from Latin inter- (“between”) + faciō (“to do, make”). Wiktionary compares English euphemisms such as “do in” and “do away with”.

It is from Latin in- + vocō (“to call”). Etymonline relates ⟨vocō⟩ to vōx “voice” and Proto-Indo-European *wekʷ- (“to speak”).

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *eisā (“anger”), inherited from Proto-Indo-European *h₁eis-h₂- (“anger”), from the root *h₁eys- (“to set in motion, impel”). The spelling ⟨eira⟩ in Plautus, in a…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *es-to-, which also gives Umbrian estu. De Vaan takes the first part as the ⟨*es-⟩ of the oblique cases of is, replaced in Latin by ⟨is-⟩, and the second as the PIE…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *eitor (“way”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁éy-tr̥ (“way, journey”), genitive *h₁i-tén-s, from the root of eō “to go”. The genitive itineris combines both stems…

It is from Latin iuba (“mane, crest”) + -ātus. The noun iuba goes back to Proto-Italic *juþā- and perhaps to Proto-Indo-European *(H)iudh-h₂- (“that moves, moveables”). Walde and Hofmann derived it…

The nominative comes from a vocative phrase meaning “father Jove”, inherited from Proto-Italic *djous patēr, from Proto-Indo-European *dyḗws (“sky, the bright one”) and Proto-Indo-European *ph₂tḗr…

1. The lip is inherited from Proto-Italic *labro-, from the same stem as labium (“lip”). Its only sure cognates are Germanic: Old English lippa, Old Frisian lepur and Old High German lefs, all…

The origin is unknown. On the assumption that “fat, rich” was the older meaning, Walde and Pokorny connected lāridum “bacon” and largus “generous”, from *lai-, a view de Vaan discusses. The TLL…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *la/eped-, and de Vaan considers it probably a Mediterranean loanword of the shape *lVpVd-. It is related to Umbrian vapeře (“on the stone seat”), and Wiktionary…

It is formed from Latin lātus (“broad, wide”) + -ē, the adverb of that adjective. De Vaan derives lātus from Proto-Italic *slāto-, whose further origin is uncertain: an older view links it with…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *lowa-, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *(le-)louh₃- (“to wash”). De Vaan explains the transitive lavere “to wash something” from the inherited present, beside…

It is from Latin legō (“to choose, gather”) + -iō, “a choosing, a levy”. Varro explains it in this way: the soldiers are “chosen” (⟨leguntur⟩) in the levy. An early inscription spells it ⟨lecio⟩…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek λέων (léōn, “lion”). Köbler and Etymonline note that the Greek word may itself come from a Semitic language, comparing Akkadian labbu (“lion”) and Hebrew ⟨lavi⟩.

It is from Latin līber (“free”) + -tās. Līber goes back to Proto-Italic *lewþ-ero-, Proto-Indo-European *h₁lewdʰ-ero-. The old spelling loebertātem quoted by Festus confirms an earlier diphthong.

It is from Latin licēns (“free, unrestrained”) + -ia, ⟨licēns⟩ being the present participle of licet “it is allowed”.

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *lik-ē- (“to be available, have the value of”). De Vaan thinks the first meaning was “to be on offer, be for sale, be worth”, as in liceō (“to fetch a price”) and…

It is a diminutive, from Latin lingua (“tongue”). The OLD sees in it partly the diminutive of the noun and partly the stem ⟨lig-⟩ of lingō (“to lick”) with the suffix ⟨-ula⟩, and Wiktionary allows…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *linkʷ-, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *li-n-kʷ- (“to leave”), a nasal present of the root Proto-Indo-European *leykʷ-. Cognate with Sanskrit रिणक्ति (riṇákti…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *līno-, perhaps from a Proto-Indo-European word, but the Oxford Latin Dictionary calls its ultimate origin uncertain. It is related to Ancient Greek λίνον (línon…

The origin is uncertain. Walde and Hofmann derived it from *lītes-ā, from an adjective of the root of linō “to smear”, “a smeared sign”; de Vaan rejects this on grounds of form. The OLD gives the…

According to de Vaan it is inherited from Proto-Italic *tlokʷ-e/o- (“to talk”), inherited from Proto-Indo-European *tlokʷ- (“to talk”). The participle ⟨locūtus⟩ is analogical, after pairs like solvō…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *louksmən, from *leuqs-men or *louqs-men, from the root Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“light, brightness”) of lūx “light”, lūceō “to shine” and lūna “moon”.