magnific

Forms

magnific m or n (feminine singular magnifică, masculine plural magnifici, feminine/neuter plural magnifice)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French magnifique.^[2][3][1][4] The neologism dictionaries add Latin magnificus as a second source, and Scriban takes it from the Latin alone.^[5][6][7] French borrowed the word from Latin about 1265;^[8] the Latin word meant “who does great things”, from magnus (“great”) and faciō (“to make, do”).^[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

MDA2 and the DLR date the first record to 1851, in A. Lăzărescu's drama Sanuto, in the form magnefic: „escortat de glasul magneficului tuci” “escorted by the voice of the magnificent bell”.^[3][4] The sense was “splendid, sumptuous”.^[4]

Semantic evolution

Said first of buildings, objects and ceremonies that show unusual luxury, it was soon applied to natural phenomena too: the DLR quotes Barasch calling the aurora borealis one of the most magnificent phenomena.^[4] Costinescu (1870) and Antonescu (1875) still spelled it magnificu.^[9][10] In modern use it is a bookish word for “grand, splendid”, and also works as a superlative, “extremely beautiful, perfect”.^[2][3] Older variants were manific and magnefic.^[3]

Timeline

• 1851 – magneficului in Lăzărescu's Sanuto.^[3][4]
• 1870 – magnificu “splendid, sumptuous” in Costinescu's dictionary.^[9]
• 1886 – glossed German herrlich, prächtig in Barcianu's dictionary.^[11]

Meanings

Adjective

1. (literary) Grand, splendid, superb; showing extraordinary luxury.^[2][3]
2. (as a superlative) Very beautiful, brilliant, perfect: O zi magnifică! “A wonderful day!”^[2][12]

Related words

• măreț
• magnat
• Latin magnus

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 611
3. ^ a b c d e f Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 1418
4. ^ a b c d e Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. magnific
5. ^ Marcu, Florin; Maneca, Constant (1986), Dicționar de neologisme, 3rd ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România
6. ^ Marcu, Florin (2000), Marele dicționar de neologisme, București: Saeculum Vizual
7. ^ Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună, p. 1, 766
8. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b Costinescu, Ion (1870), Vocabularu romano-francesu, 2 vols., Bucuresci, p. 2, 58
10. ^ Antonescu, G. M. (1875), Dictionariu romanu-francesu, Bucuresci: Typografia Curții (Lucrători Associați), p. 169
11. ^ Barcianu, Sava Popovici (1886), Dicționar român-germân și germân-român, revised by D. P. Barcianu, part I: român-germân, Sibiu: Institut tipografic, p. 363
12. ^ Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2002), Noul dicționar explicativ al limbii române, București: Litera Internațional