maledico Latin · revision 6465

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=compound|attested=Plautus|origins=la male, la dīcō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA (Classical): [ma.ɫɛˈdiː.koː]^(Wiktionary)

+ * IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ma.leˈdiː.ko]^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''maledīcō''' (present infinitive maledīcere, perfect active maledīxī, supine maledictum); third conjugation, irregular short imperative^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is from [[male]] “badly” and [[dīcō]] “to say”, and is often written ⟨male dīcō⟩.^(OLD 2012)^(Wiktionary)^(Lewis & Short 1879)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The OLD's first citations are from Plautus, who also has the reversed order ''dīcunt male''.^(OLD 2012)^(Lewis & Short 1879) Köbler dates Plautus c. 250–184 BC.^(Köbler 2010)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ It meant to speak ill of, abuse, insult, revile, with a dative or absolutely, as Cicero's outraging of someone, and transitively in Petronius.^(OLD 2012)^(Gaffiot 2016)

+

+ In Christian Latin it came to mean to curse, and in Ecclesiastical Latin to curse, speak evil, revile, slander.^(Stelten 1995) It survives in French ''maudire'', Italian ''maledire'' and Spanish ''maldecir'' “to curse”.^(Wiktionary) [[en|malediction]] came in the mid-15th century from its noun ''maledictiō'', which in Late Latin meant “a curse”.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 250–184 BC – Plautus uses it of abusing people.^(OLD 2012)^(Köbler 2010)

+ * 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it of insulting someone.^(Gaffiot 2016)^(Köbler 2010)

+ * before 66 AD – Petronius uses it transitively.^(OLD 2012)^(Köbler 2010)

+ * mid-15th century – English ''malediction'' is recorded.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To speak ill of, [[m|en|abuse]], insult.^(OLD 2012)

+ # ''(Ecclesiastical Latin)'' To [[m|en|curse]].^(Stelten 1995)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[maledīcentia]]

+ * [[maledictiō]]

+ * [[maledictor]]

+ * [[maledictum]]

+ * [[praemaledico]]

+ * [[remaledīcō]]

+ * [[maledicē]]

+ * [[maledīcēns]]

+ * [[maledictitō]]

+ * [[maledictus]]

+ * [[maledicus]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[maledicāx]]

+ * [[male]]

+ * [[dīcō]]

+ * [[benedīcō]]

+ * [[en|malediction]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}