nu

Forms

nu (feminine nua, masculine plural nus, feminine plural nuas)^[1] The medieval forms are nuu and the feminine nua, recorded from the 13th century;^[2][3] nuu is still written in the 15th century.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin nūdus (“naked”), written Old Galician-Portuguese nuu in the oldest texts.^[2][3][1][4] García de Diego records the old form in Catalan too, and the modern form in Galician as well as Portuguese.^[5]

The same Latin word is Galician nu, Old Spanish nuo, French nu and Italian nudo;^[6][5][1] the Spanish nudo “naked” is a learned word.^[6][5][1] De Vaan reconstructs a PIE adjective Proto-Indo-European *nogʷs “naked”.^[7] Wiktionary gives *nogʷedʰós, from *nogʷós.^[1] Cognates are Ancient Greek γυμνός (gumnós), Sanskrit नग्न (nagná) and Old English nacod, the source of English naked.^[1][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Cantigas de Santa Maria have pero ando nuu e mui mal parado “but I go naked and in a very poor state” and senon da camisa, toda nua “all naked but for her shift”.^[8] A cantiga d'escarnho of Estevan da Guarda has que fiquedes nuu “that you may be left naked”, of a man's wealth.^[8] The Miragres de Santiago speak of clothing os que erã nuus “those who were naked” and of a espada nua, an unsheathed sword.^[8]

Semantic evolution

Beside “naked”, the medieval language already used the word of an unsheathed sword.^[8] Bluteau's dictionary records meio nu “half-naked” and the use of nu for a person in rags.^[9] Folqman has espada nua.^[10] Later senses extend it to things without covering, leaves or ornament (pés nus, árvores nuas, paredes nuas), to plain unadorned speech and to the undisguised truth, as in a verdade nua e crua.^[2][11]

As a noun nu means nakedness and, in the visual arts, a figure of the naked body (nu artístico).^[2][12]

Timeline

• 13th century – first records, as nuu and nua.^[2][3]
• 15th century – nuu is still written.^[2]
• 1569 – Cardoso's dictionary translates nu as Latin nudus.^[13]
• 1712–1728 – Bluteau records meio nu.^[9]
• 1755 – Folqman records espada nua.^[10]
• 1789 – Morais heads the word nú.^[14]

Meanings

Adjective

1. naked, nude: wearing no clothes; despido, desnudo.^[2][11][1]
2. Wearing very little; partly dressed.^[2][15]
3. Bare: without shoes (of feet), without covering or protection: cabeça nua.^[2][11]
4. Without ornament or decoration; without leaves; without vegetation.^[2][11][12]
5. Unsheathed (of a sword or dagger).^[2][12]
6. (figurative) Plain, unadorned (of speech); undisguised, evident: a verdade nua e crua.^[2][11]
7. Lacking what is needed; unprotected;^[2][16] (figurative) rough, uncouth.^[2][16]

Noun

1. Nakedness (nudez).^[2][16]
2. (art) A nude: a painting, sculpture or drawing of the naked body: nu artístico.^[2][12]

Related words

• nudez
• desnudo
• desnudar
• nudismo
• Latin nūdus
• Galician nu

Usage notes

Fixed phrases: a nu and pôr a nu “openly, to lay bare”;^[2][16] nu e cru “frankly, without softening”;^[2][16] a olho nu “with the naked eye”.^[2][16]

A separate masculine noun nu is the Greek letter ν, the same as ni; the Academia's dictionary derives it from Ancient Greek νῦ (nû).^[2][11][12]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Houaiss, Antônio; Villar, Mauro de Salles (2001), Dicionário Houaiss da língua portuguesa, Rio de Janeiro: Objetiva, p. s.v. nu
3. ^ a b c d Cunha, Antônio Geraldo da (2010), Dicionário etimológico da língua portuguesa, 4th ed., Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon, p. s.v. nu
4. ^ Nascentes, Antenor (1966), Dicionário etimológico resumido, Rio de Janeiro: Instituto Nacional do Livro, p. s.v. nu
5. ^ a b c García de Diego, Vicente (1985), Diccionario etimológico español e hispánico, 2nd ed., Madrid: Espasa-Calpe (1st ed. 1954), p. s.v. nudus
6. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
7. ^ a b de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
8. ^ a b c d Instituto da Lingua Galega, Dicionario de dicionarios do galego medieval (DDGM), ed. Ernesto González Seoane, Santiago de Compostela: Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, https://ilg.usc.gal/ddgm, p. s.v. nuu
9. ^ a b Bluteau, Raphael (1712–1728), Vocabulario portuguez e latino, 8 vols. + 2 supplement vols., Coimbra / Lisboa (CLP transcription, Universidade de Aveiro), p. s.v. nu
10. ^ a b Folqman, Carlos (1755), Diccionario portuguez, e latino, Lisboa: Régia Officina Silviana (CLP transcription, Universidade de Aveiro), p. s.v. nu
11. ^ a b c d e f Ferreira, Aurélio Buarque de Holanda, Novo dicionário Aurélio da língua portuguesa, digital edition, p. s.v. nu
12. ^ a b c d e Academia das Ciências de Lisboa, Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa, revised online edition (2023–) of the Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa Contemporânea (2001), https://dicionario.acad-ciencias.pt, p. s.v. nu
13. ^ Cardoso, Jerónimo (1569–1570), Dictionarium ex lusitanico in latinum sermonem, Lisboa: João Álvares (CLP transcription, Universidade de Aveiro), p. s.v. nu
14. ^ Silva, António de Morais (1789), Diccionario da lingua portugueza composto pelo padre D. Rafael Bluteau, reformado, e accrescentado, 2 vols., Lisboa: Simão Thaddeo Ferreira, p. 2, 121
15. ^ Aulete, Francisco Júlio Caldas, Dicionário contemporâneo da língua portuguesa (1st ed. 1881), online as Aulete Digital, Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon, https://aulete.com.br, p. s.v. nu
16. ^ a b c d e f Michaelis: Moderno Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa, São Paulo: Melhoramentos (online as Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa, https://michaelis.uol.com.br), p. s.v. nu