300–201 BC

Romanian words from Latin words first recorded in the 3rd century BC

503 Romanian words inherited from a Latin word whose earliest known written record dates from the 3rd century BC, earliest Latin record first (page 8).

tinde
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin tendo

It is inherited from Latin tendō (“to stretch, extend”), which goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ten- (“to stretch”). It survives south of the Danube as Aromanian tindu and Megleno-Romanian tind…
toapsec
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin toxicum

It is inherited from Latin toxicum (“poison”), as Tiktin, Candrea and the REW give it. Ciorănescu notes Tiktin's doubts but judges it an inherited word, though it is rare and recorded only from the…
toarce
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin torqueo

It is inherited from Latin torqueō (“to twist, turn”), in the third-conjugation form *torcere of spoken Latin. The verb survives in all four branches: Aromanian torcu, Megleno-Romanian torcu and…
trepăda
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin trepido

It is inherited from Latin trepidō (“to hurry about in alarm”), a verb formed on trepidus (“anxious, agitated”). The REW glosses the Latin verb “to run to and fro” and gives Romanian as its only…
tuna
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin tono

It is inherited from Latin tonō (“to thunder”). The Latin verb comes from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tenh₂- (“to thunder”), the root of English thunder too. It survives in Aromanian tun and…
turba
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin turbo

It is inherited from Latin turbō (“to disturb, throw into confusion”), a verb formed on turba (“turmoil, crowd”). Pascu derived it from a *torvō formed on torvus (“grim, glaring”), which DER judges…
umbră
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin umbra

It is inherited from Latin umbra (“shadow, shade”). The word survives south of the Danube: Aromanian aumbrã and Megleno-Romanian umbră. Wiktionary suggests the Aromanian form may owe its initial…
umfla
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin inflo

It is inherited from Latin inflō (“to blow into, inflate”). The Latin verb is formed from in- and flō (“to blow”). The verb survives in all four branches: Aromanian umflu, Megleno-Romanian amflu and…
umple
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin impleo

It is inherited from Latin impleō (“to fill”), formed from Latin in- + pleō. Wiktionary starts from a Vulgar Latin *implĕre of the third conjugation. As in umfla, the change of ⟨in-⟩ to ⟨un-⟩ may be…
unchi
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin avunculus

It is inherited from Latin avunculus (“maternal uncle”), probably through a shortened *unclus. The Latin word is a diminutive of avus (“grandfather”). The same short form underlies French oncle and…
vargă
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin virga

It is inherited from Latin virga (“twig, rod”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian veargã, Megleno-Romanian veargă and Istro-Romanian verge. Its Romance cognates include Italian verga…
venin
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin venenum

It is inherited from Latin venēnum (“poison”). Wiktionary allows a later Latin form venīnum as the direct source. Pușcariu cites Ascoli for such a form behind several Romance words. De Vaan derives…
veșmânt
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin vestimentum

It is inherited from Latin vestīmentum (“clothing, garment”). It was formed from vestiō (“to clothe”) and the suffix -mentum. The word survives in Aromanian and Megleno-Romanian: Aromanian visminte…
viers
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin versus

It is inherited from Latin versus (“line, row, verse”). The Latin noun comes from vertō (“to turn”). Pușcariu lists Italian verso, French vers, Spanish vierso and Portuguese verso as cognates, and…
vintre
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin venter

It is inherited from Latin venter (“belly, abdomen”), from its accusative form. Pușcariu discusses it as article 1899 of his dictionary of the Latin element. Its Romance cognates include Dalmatian…
vipt
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin victus

It is inherited from Latin vīctus (“sustenance, food”), as Pușcariu, the REW, DEX and MDA2 give it. The Latin noun is formed on vīvō (“to live”). The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian…
văduv
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin viduus

It is inherited from Latin viduus (“deprived of a spouse”), and its feminine văduvă continues vidua (“widow”). It survives in Aromanian veduu. Its Romance cognates include Italian vedovo, French…
zăcea
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin iaceo

It is inherited from Latin iaceō (“to lie”). Ciorănescu cites Pușcariu and the REW for this etymology. Latin /j/ would give ⟨j⟩ in Romanian; the ⟨z⟩ is put down to dissimilation from the following…
împinge
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin impingo

It is inherited from Latin impingō (“to thrust into, push”). The verb survives as Aromanian pingu. Papahagi derives it from Latin pingō, Pascu from a variant of the classical pangō (“to fix…
împărat
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin imperator

It is inherited from Latin imperātor (“commander, emperor”), from imperō (“to command”). Ciorănescu and Scriban note that it continues the Latin nominative, not the accusative, as Albanian mbret…
încinge
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin incendo

1. The word for “catch fire, heat up” is inherited from Latin incendō (“to set on fire, kindle”). Ciorănescu follows Pușcariu, Candrea and Densusianu, the REW and the DA, and compares Italian…
îngust
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin angustus

It is inherited from Latin angustus (“narrow”). The Latin adjective goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₂enǵʰ- (“narrow, tight”), through a neuter s-stem noun. The adjective survives in Aromanian and…
întru
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin intro

It is inherited from Latin intrō (“inside, within”), a Latin adverb that became a preposition in the Romance languages. Candrea and Densusianu point to its prepositional use in the Latin veterinary…
învita
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin invito

It is inherited from Latin invītō (“to invite, entertain; to encourage”). De Vaan explains the Latin verb as a prefixed in- with a derived verb meaning “to pursue”, from Proto-Indo-European *weyh₁-…
înțelege
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin intellego

It is inherited from Latin intelligō (“to understand”). The /ts/ comes from the old first person singular, stressed on its second syllable, where the Latin /t/ stood before an unstressed /e/; it…
șa
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin sella

It is inherited from Latin sella (“seat; saddle”), through an older form șea. The Latin word comes from *sedlā, from Proto-Indo-European *sed- (“to sit”). The word survives south of the Danube as…
șale
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin sella

It is inherited from Latin sella (“seat, chair; saddle”), in origin the plural of șa “saddle”. Ciorănescu notes that the saddle word may also have the plural ⟨șele⟩ in its other senses, while for…
șapte
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin septem

It is inherited from Latin septem (“seven”), from Proto-Indo-European *septḿ̥ (“seven”). The numeral survives in all four branches: Aromanian shapte, Megleno-Romanian șapti and Istro-Romanian sǫpte…
șase
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin sex

It is inherited from Latin sex (“six”). DEX starts from a variant Vulgar Latin *sess, and Capidan from *sesse. The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian șase, Megleno-Romanian șasi and…
țese
205 BC–184 BC

from Latin texo

It is inherited from Latin texō (“to weave, construct”), a verb found in every Romance language. The Latin verb goes back to Proto-Italic *teksō, and its further origin is debated: de Vaan…
adânc
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin aduncus

It is inherited from Latin aduncus (“hooked, curved”). The Latin adjective is formed from ad- and uncus (“a hook; hooked”). The sense moved from “curved” to “hollow” and then to “deep”. Candrea and…
aer
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin aer

It is inherited from Latin āēr (“air”), itself from Ancient Greek ἀήρ (aḗr). Ciorănescu, following Pușcariu, the REW and the DA, takes it directly from Latin. Tiktin points out that old Romanian did…
arc
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin arcus

It is inherited from Latin arcus (“bow, arch”), a word continued across the Romance languages. The Latin word goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₂erkʷo- (“bow, arrow”). De Vaan compares Germanic…
care
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin qualis

It is inherited from Latin quālis (“of what kind”). In the Romance languages it competed with quī (“who, which”) and became a plain relative and interrogative pronoun. The pronoun survives in all…
coamă
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin coma

It is inherited from Latin coma (“hair of the head; mane; foliage”). The Latin word is from Ancient Greek κόμη (kómē, “hair of the head”). The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian coamã…
crunt
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin cruentus

It is inherited from Latin cruentus (“bloody, blood-stained; cruel”). Tiktin compares the loss of the vowel with junc from iuvencus. The Latin adjective is built on the root of cruor (“blood”) and…
cât
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin quantus

It is inherited from Latin quantus (“how great, how much”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian cãt, Megleno-Romanian cǫt and Istro-Romanian cât. Its Romance cognates include Italian quanto…
drac
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin draco

It is inherited from Latin dracō (“dragon, large snake”), which is from Ancient Greek δράκων (drákōn, “serpent, dragon”). Romanian continues the Latin nominative, as in cap, om and șarpe, perhaps…
foarte
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin forte

It is inherited from Latin forte (“strong, strongly”), a form of the adjective fortis (“strong, robust”) that came to be used as an adverb. Wiktionary traces the Latin adjective to…
frasin
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin fraxinus

It is inherited from Latin fraxinus (“ash tree”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian frapsin, Megleno-Romanian frasin and Istro-Romanian frǫsir. Its Romance cognates include Italian…
frig
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin frigus

It is inherited from Latin frīgus (“cold, frost”). The plural friguri “fever” continues a Latin use: Celsus already used the noun for the shivering of fever, and its plural is recorded with the…
frunte
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin frons

It is inherited from Latin frontem (“forehead”). The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian frãmte, Megleno-Romanian frînte and Istro-Romanian frunte. Its Romance cognates include Italian…
fugă
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin fuga

1. The word for running and flight is inherited from Latin fuga (“flight”). It survives in all four branches: Aromanian fugă, Megleno-Romanian fugă and Istro-Romanian fuge. Its Romance cognates…
făt
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin fetus

It is inherited from Latin fētus (“offspring, young”). It survives in Aromanian fet and Istro-Romanian fet. Ciorănescu compares Sardinian fedu and Occitan fedoun “lamb”. The feminine fată “girl” and…
geamăt
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin gemitus

It is inherited from Latin gemitus (“groan, sigh”), from gemō (“to groan”). Ciorănescu, who names Pușcariu, Candrea–Densusianu and the REW for this etymon, thinks it may just as well be a formation…
ginere
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin gener

It is inherited from Latin gener (“son-in-law”). The Latin word comes from Proto-Indo-European *ǵm̥ros, and its ⟨n⟩ is explained from an earlier ⟨m⟩; Ancient Greek γαμβρός (gambrós, “son-in-law…
jug
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin iugum

It is inherited from Latin iugum (“yoke”). The Latin word goes back through Proto-Italic *jugom to Proto-Indo-European *yugóm, formed on the root *yewg- (“to yoke, join”). Its cognates include…
lupta
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin luctor

It is inherited from Latin luctor (“to wrestle, struggle”), through the active form luctāre that Old Latin used beside the classical deponent. The Latin verb was first a term of athletics, “to…
lăcrima
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin lacrimo

It is inherited from Latin lacrimō (“to shed tears, weep”), from lacrima (“tear”). Pușcariu (EWRS no. 933), Candrea and Densusianu and the DA take it straight from the Latin verb; Ciorănescu treats…
lătra
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin latro

It is inherited from Latin lātrō (“to bark”). The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian alatru, Megleno-Romanian latru and Istro-Romanian lǫtru. Its Romance cognates include Italian latrare…
lăuda
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin laudo

It is inherited from Latin laudō (“to praise”). The Latin verb is formed on laus (“praise”). Pușcariu, Candrea and Densusianu, and the REW give the same source. The verb survives south of the…
marmură
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin marmor

It is inherited from Latin marmor (“marble”). The Latin word is borrowed from Ancient Greek μάρμαρος (mármaros, “stone, marble”). Beekes describes the Greek word's first sense as “stone, rock” and…
moale
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin mollis

It is inherited from Latin mollis (“soft”). The Latin adjective goes back through Proto-Italic to Proto-Indo-European *ml̥dus (“soft, weak”); de Vaan explains it as an old u-stem remade into an…
noi
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin nos

It is inherited from Latin nōs (“we, us”). The final /i/ is explained in different ways. Candrea and Densusianu see a regular change of final /s/ to /i/ in stressed monosyllables, as in trei and…
nuntă
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin nuptiae

It is inherited from Latin nuptiae (“wedding”), a plural noun formed on nupta (“bride”), the participle of nūbō (“to marry”). The word survives in all four branches: Aromanian numtã (also lumtã)…
ou
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin ovum

It is inherited from Latin ōvum (“egg”), perhaps through a Vulgar Latin form with a short vowel. The Latin word comes from *h₂ōwyóm (“egg”), and is related to Ancient Greek ᾠόν (ōión). It survives…
pieri
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin pereo

It is inherited from Latin pereō (“to pass away, perish”). The Latin verb is formed from per- (“through”) and eō (“to go”). Ciorănescu notes that the word is in general use throughout the Romanian…
pin
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin pinus

It is inherited from Latin pīnus (“pine”). It survives south of the Danube: Aromanian chin and Megleno-Romanian pin. Its Romance cognates include Italian pino, French pin, Catalan pi, Spanish pino…
plin
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin plenus

It is inherited from Latin plēnus (“full”). The Latin word comes from Proto-Italic *plēnos, from an e-grade variant of Proto-Indo-European *pl̥h₁nós (“full”); it is related to Ancient Greek πλήρης…
punte
204 BC–169 BC

from Latin pons

It is inherited from Latin pontem (“bridge”). DER cites Pușcariu, Candrea–Densusianu and the REW. De Vaan traces the Latin word, which also meant “plank”, to a Proto-Italic stem and a…

All Romanian words inherited from Latin, by century →