Latin words first recorded in the 3rd century BC

It is formed from Latin bellum (“war”) + -ō, the verb suffix. The noun is older ⟨duellum⟩, still in Plautus; de Vaan discusses why ⟨du-⟩ was kept in perduellis (“public enemy”) and the change to…

It is from Latin causa (“cause, reason, lawsuit”) + -ō. De Vaan dates it from Pacuvius onwards, with the sense “to plead a cause”. The origin of causa, spelled ⟨caussa⟩ in inscriptions until the 1st…

It is from Latin con- + tremō (“to tremble”). De Vaan traces the simple verb to Proto-Italic *trem-e/o- and Proto-Indo-European *tr(e)m- (“to tremble”), and compares Ancient Greek τρέμω (trémō, “to…

It is from Latin coruscus (“quivering, flashing”) + -ō. De Vaan finds the origin of coruscus unclear: Walde and Hofmann's link with ⟨*(s)ker-⟩ “to jump”, as in Ancient Greek σκαίρω (skaírō, “to…

It is from Latin dē- + nūdō (“to strip, lay bare”). The simple verb is formed from nūdus (“naked”), which de Vaan traces through Proto-Italic *nowo/eþo- (“naked”) to a root adjective…

It is formed from Latin dignus (“worthy”). De Vaan lists dignus and this verb among the derivatives of decet (“it is fitting”), tracing dignus to Proto-Italic *dek-no- (“worthy”) and…

It is formed from Latin dis- (“apart”) + sentiō (“to feel, think”). De Vaan traces ⟨sentiō⟩ to Proto-Italic *sentije/o- and Proto-Indo-European *sent- (“to notice”), and compares Lithuanian sintėti…

It is from Latin ex- + lingua (“tongue”) + -is, “without a tongue”. lingua goes back to Proto-Indo-European *dnǵh-uh2 (“tongue”), with its /l/ taken from lingō (“to lick”).

It is from Latin ex- + hālō (“to breathe”). De Vaan follows Schrijver in taking hālō as an early denominative of Proto-Italic *anaslo- (“breath”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂enh₁-slo- (“a…

It is from Latin exorior + -tus, the noun of action of exorior (“to appear, arise”), a compound of ex- and orior (“to rise”). That verb goes back to Proto-Italic *or-i- (“to rise”) and…

It is from Proto-Italic *fati- (“exhaustion”), a noun preserved in affatim (“amply”) and also the base of fatīgō (“to tire out”) and fessus (“tired”). De Vaan thinks that the deponent fatīscor was…

It is formed from Latin frāter (“brother”) + -nus. De Vaan derives ⟨frāter⟩ from Proto-Italic *frāter- and Proto-Indo-European *bʰréh₂-tr- (“brother”). Cognate with Umbrian frater (“brothers”)…

It is from Latin horreō (“to bristle, shudder”) + -fer (“bearing”); the TLL derives it from horror and ferō (“to carry”), and compares words like horrificus and pestifer. De Vaan traces the verb to…

It is from Latin in- + laqueō (“to ensnare”). The verb laqueō comes from laqueus “noose, snare”.

It is from Latin in- (“not”) + pexus (“combed”), the participle of pectō (“to comb”). That verb goes back to Proto-Italic *petke/o- (“to comb”), which de Vaan, following Pinault, derives from a…

It is from Latin in- + anima (“breath, soul”) + -us.

It is formed from Latin īnferus (“lower”) + -nus (from the stem of ⟨īnferus⟩), after supernus (“upper”). De Vaan derives ⟨īnferus⟩ from Proto-Italic *enþero- (“lower”) and Proto-Indo-European…

The OLD and the TLL take it as from Latin in- + horrēscō (“to bristle, shudder”), while Wiktionary derives it from inhorreō (“to bristle”) with the inchoative suffix -scō. De Vaan lists it under…

It is from Latin in- (“not”) + humātus (“buried”), the negative of the participle of humō (“to bury”). De Vaan derives humō from humus (“earth, ground”), which goes back to Proto-Italic *χomo- and…

It is formed from Latin in- (“into”) + quaerō (“to seek”). De Vaan finds the origin of ⟨quaerō⟩ disputed and reports Nussbaum's derivation from a root Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- (“to acquire”)…

It is from Latin in- (“not”) + suētus (“accustomed”), the participle of suēscō (“to become accustomed”). De Vaan traces suēscō to Proto-Italic *swē(þ)-sk-e/o- and Proto-Indo-European *sue(h₁-)dʰh₁-…

It is from Latin lāna (“wool”) + -ūgō. De Vaan traces lāna to Proto-Italic *wlānā- and Proto-Indo-European *h₂ulh₁-neh₂- (“wool”), literally “plucked material”. Cognate with Old Irish olann…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek νύμφη (númphē, “bride; nymph”), apparently with dissimilation of the consonants. Following Wackernagel, the Thesaurus takes the old form to be ⟨lumpa⟩, with /n/…

Used as an adjective, it is the past participle from Latin lymphō (“to drive mad”). The TLL thinks it was rather formed back from lymphāticus (“frenzied”), the verb then being made from the…

It is from Latin mītis (“mild, mellow”) + -ēscō, an inchoative verb. De Vaan traces mītis to Proto-Italic *mīti- and Proto-Indo-European *m(e)h₁i-ti- (“soft”), with cognates such as Irish mín…

It is formed from Latin mollis (“soft”) + -iō, the verb suffix. De Vaan derives ⟨mollis⟩ from Proto-Italic *moldu- and Proto-Indo-European *mld-u- (“soft”), a stem in ⟨-u-⟩ remade as one in ⟨-i-⟩ in…

It is inherited from Proto-Indo-European *mr̥-mr̥-, a reduplicated, imitative formation; the OLD calls it onomatopoeic. De Vaan notes that the verb murmurō (“to murmur”) is recorded earlier, so the…

It is formed from Latin naufragus (“shipwrecked”) + -ium; the adjective is from nāvis (“ship”) and frangō (“to break”). De Vaan derives ⟨nāvis⟩ from Proto-Indo-European *neh₂-u- (“ship”), probably…

It is from Latin nītor (“to lean, strive”) + -tus. De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of nītor, which he reconstructs as Proto-Italic *kniχw-et-; he notes that the verb's first meaning could…

It is from Latin nōbilis (“well known, famous; noble”) + -itō, formed like dēbilitō; the OLD analyses it as the adjective with the verbal ending of the first conjugation. De Vaan lists it among the…

It is formed from Latin ob- (“before, towards”) + testor (“to bear witness”). ⟨testor⟩ is made from testis (“witness”), which de Vaan derives from Proto-Italic *tri-sto/i- and Proto-Indo-European…

It is from Latin obtueor (“to gaze at”) + -tus, a noun of action. That verb joins ob- and tueor (“to watch over; to look at”). De Vaan thinks that the older meaning of the simple verb was to watch…

It is the adverb from Latin occultus (“hidden, secret”) + -ē. The adjective is the participle of occulō (“to hide”), which de Vaan explains as ob- with a present Proto-Italic *kele/o-, from…

It is from Latin orbus (“bereaved, orphaned”) + -ō. De Vaan traces orbus to Proto-Italic *orfo- (“heir, orphan”) and Proto-Indo-European *h₃orbʰ-o- (“turning, what is turned over”), which came to…

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek πέλαγος (pélagos, “sea, open sea”). The origin of the Greek word is unclear; Köbler refers it to Pokorny's root Proto-Indo-European *plāk- (“broad, flat”).

It is from Latin per- + mulceō (“to stroke”). De Vaan traces mulceō to Proto-Italic *molk-eje- (“to stroke, rub”) and Proto-Indo-European *m(o)lḱ-eie- (“to touch repeatedly”), comparing Sanskrit…

It is from Latin per- + vulgō (“to make common, spread among the people”).

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek φιλόσοφος (philósophos, “lover of wisdom, philosopher”), from φίλος (phílos, “loving, friend”) and σοφός (sophós, “wise, skilled”).

It is from Latin portendō (“to foretell, portend”), the neuter of its past participle, used as a noun. ⟨portendō⟩ is from por- and tendō (“to stretch”), which de Vaan derives from…

It is formed from Latin prīmus (“first”) + -ordium, as in exōrdium (“beginning”), from ōrdior (“to lay the warp, begin”). De Vaan lists it among the derivatives of ⟨ōrdior⟩, whose first meaning he…

It is from Latin probus (“good, upright”) + -tās. The adjective probus goes back to Proto-Italic *profwos (“favourable”) and Proto-Indo-European *pro-bʰh₂u-o-. Cognate with Umbrian prufe (“correct”)…

It is from Latin proficīscor (“to set out”) + -tiō. De Vaan lists ⟨proficīscor⟩ among the derivatives of faciō (“to make, do”), whose stem ⟨*fak-⟩ he traces to the aorist of Proto-Indo-European…

It is from Latin puter (“rotten”) + -eō, a stative verb. The adjective goes back to Proto-Italic *putri- (“rotten”) and Proto-Indo-European *puH-tro- (“rotten”), from the root of pūs (“pus”).

It is the ablative phrase ⟨quā rē⟩, “by which thing”, from Latin quī + rēs (“thing, matter”), in the ablative, and is also written separately.

It is formed from Latin re- (“back, against”) + pugnō (“to fight”). ⟨pugnō⟩ is from pugna (“fight”), which de Vaan groups with pugnus (“fist”) and pungō (“to prick”) under Proto-Italic *pung- and…

It is from Latin rīma (“crack, fissure”) + -ō. De Vaan finds the origin of rīma unclear: a preform from the root Proto-Indo-European *h₁reiḱ- (“to tear, break”) of rixa would fit, but several other…

It is formed from Latin scrūpulus + -ōsus. De Vaan files it under scrūpus, beside scrūpulus (“worry, precaution”), and finds no etymology for the family.

It is from Latin sēmi- (“half”) + ēsus (“eaten”), the second part being the past participle of edō (“to eat”). De Vaan traces that verb to Proto-Italic *ed- (“to eat”) and Proto-Indo-European…

It is an onomatopoeic word. De Vaan notes that the verb sībilō (“to hiss”) is recorded earlier than the noun, and takes the word to imitate a sound /siːb/, or /siː/ with a suffix. The OLD compares…

It is formed from Latin similis (“like”) + -tūdō. De Vaan traces ⟨similis⟩ to Proto-Italic *semali- (“alike, together”) and Proto-Indo-European *smh₂-el-i-; it is cognate with Old Irish samail…

It is from Latin speciō (“to look at”) + -tus. speciō goes back to Proto-Italic *spekje/o- and Proto-Indo-European *speḱ-ie/o- (“to look”).

It is from Latin strīdō (“to make a shrill sound”) + -or. De Vaan explains strīdō as onomatopoeic, with ⟨str-⟩ and ⟨-i-⟩ rendering a high, thrilling tone, and compares Ancient Greek τρίζω (trízō…

It is from Latin sūbiciō (“to throw under, throw up”) + -tō, a frequentative.

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *s(j)ūje/o-, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *siuH-ie/o- (“to sew”). De Vaan explains the Sanskrit forms as keeping traces of an older sequence *siHu-, which was…

It is from Latin suspendō (“to hang up; to keep in suspense”), its participle, used as an adjective. The verb is sub- (“under, up”) with pendō (“to hang; to weigh”), whose further origin de Vaan…

It is formed from Latin testū (“earthenware pot”) or from testa (“pot, shell”), with the ending of hirūdō (“leech”). Varro already connected it with ⟨testa⟩. De Vaan lists it under ⟨testa⟩, which he…

It is from Latin timidus (“fearful, timid”) + -tās. The adjective comes from timeō (“to fear”), whose origin is unclear: de Vaan finds the connection with words for “stiff” proposed by Walde–Hofmann…

It is inherited from Proto-Italic *torgʷo-, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *torgʷ-o- (“grim, angry”). Cognate with Hittite tarkuu̯ant- (“looking angrily”), Sanskrit तर्जति (tarjati, “to…

It is from Latin trānsmittō (“to send across, cross”) + -tus, a fourth-declension noun of action.

It is formed from Latin tumeō (“to swell”) + -ulus. De Vaan traces the verb to Proto-Italic *tum-ē- and Proto-Indo-European *tum-eh₁- (“to be swelling”), cognate with Welsh tyfu (“to grow”)…