puto Latin · revision 3314

+ {{infobox|confidence=probable|formation=derivation|attested=Plautus|origins=la putus}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA (Classical): [ˈpʊ.toː]^(Wiktionary)

+ * IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ˈpuː.to]^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''putō''' (present infinitive putāre, perfect active putāvī, supine putātum); first conjugation^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[der|la|putus|t=clean, pure]], which goes back to [[itc-pro|*puto-|t=cut off, clean]], [[ine-pro|*pHu-tó-]].^(de Vaan 2008)^(OLD 2012)^(Wiktionary) Its first meaning was to prune trees, cutting off unwanted branches.^(de Vaan 2008) The senses “to think over” and “to reckon” grew out of this.^(de Vaan 2008)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ It is found from Plautus onwards,^(de Vaan 2008)^(Köbler 2010) where a slave tells his master to reckon up the account, ''rationem puta''.^(OLD 2012) Cato tells the farmer to begin pruning his vines and trees early.^(OLD 2012)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ It meant to clean, as wool, and to prune or lop trees and vines, as in Cato and Virgil.^(OLD 2012)^(Georges 1913)^(Gaffiot 2016) ''Rationem putare'' was to add up and settle accounts.^(OLD 2012) From this it came to mean to go over in the mind, as Terence's “while I was thinking about this I walked past the house”, and Virgil's ''multa putans'', “pondering much”.^(OLD 2012)

+

+ It meant to estimate or count, as Cato's rule that certain tiles count as two, and to consider or regard, as in Terence's ''humani nil a me alienum puto'', “I consider nothing human foreign to me”.^(OLD 2012) It meant to think or suppose, and ''puto'' in parenthesis was “I think, no doubt”, often ironic.^(OLD 2012) Its compounds [[computo|alt=computō]], [[disputo|alt=disputō]], [[amputo|alt=amputō]] and [[imputo|alt=imputō]] gave many English words.^(Wiktionary) It survives as Italian ''potare'' and Spanish and Portuguese ''podar'', “to prune”.^(Wiktionary) English ''count'' came through Old French from ''computare'', and ''putative'' from Late Latin ''putativus''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it for reckoning accounts.^(OLD 2012)^(Köbler 2010)

+ * 234–149 BC – Cato uses it for pruning.^(OLD 2012)^(Köbler 2010)

+ * 190–159 BC – Terence writes ''humani nil a me alienum puto''.^(OLD 2012)^(Köbler 2010)

+ * 70–19 BC – Virgil uses it for pondering.^(OLD 2012)^(Köbler 2010)

+ * late 14th century – English ''count'' is first recorded.^(Etymonline)

+ * early 15th century – English ''putative'' is first recorded.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To clean (wool).^(Georges 1913)^(Gaffiot 2016)

+ # To [[m|en|prune]], lop (trees, vines).^(OLD 2012)^(Lewis & Short 1879)

+ # ''rationem putare'' To settle (accounts).^(OLD 2012)

+ # To ponder, think over.^(OLD 2012)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To estimate, count.^(OLD 2012)

+ # To consider, regard (as).^(OLD 2012)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To think, suppose, ''puto'' I suppose.^(OLD 2012)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''puta'' Suppose, for instance.^(OLD 2012)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[amputō]]

+ * [[circumputo]]

+ * [[computō]]

+ * [[dēputō]]

+ * [[disputō]]

+ * [[exputō]]

+ * [[imputātus]]

+ * [[imputō]]

+ * [[interputō]]

+ * [[opputō]]

+ * [[perputō]]

+ * [[postputō]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[putus]]

+ * [[en|count]]

+ * [[en|compute]]

+ * [[en|dispute]]

+ * [[en|amputate]]

+ * [[en|putative]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}