fidelis

Latin

Etymology

From fidēs (“faith, trust”) +‎ -ēlis.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /fiˈdeː.lis/, [fɪˈd̪eːlʲɪs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /fiˈde.lis/, [fiˈd̪ɛːlis]

Adjective

fidēlis (neuter fidēle, comparative fidēlior, superlative fidēlissimus, adverb fidēliter); third-declension two-termination adjective

1. faithful, loyal
   • semper fidelis
     • always faithful
2. true, trustworthy, dependable

Declension

Third-declension two-termination adjective.

Number	Singular			Plural
Case / Gender	Masc./Fem.	Neuter		Masc./Fem.	Neuter
Nominative	fidēlis	fidēle		fidēlēs	fidēlia
Genitive	fidēlis			fidēlium
Dative	fidēlī			fidēlibus
Accusative	fidēlem	fidēle		fidēlēs fidēlīs	fidēlia
Ablative	fidēlī			fidēlibus
Vocative	fidēlis	fidēle		fidēlēs	fidēlia

Descendants

• Italo-Romance;
  • Italian: fedele
    • → Ladin: fedel
    • → Sicilian: fideli
• North Italian:
  • Friulian: fidêl
• Gallo-Romance:
  • Old French: feel, feal, feau, feeil, fial, fiel; fedeil, fetheil (early) (early fedeil)
    • Middle French: feal, fieu, foial
      • French: féal
    • → Early Scots: feal, feale, feall
      • Middle Scots: feall, fiall
        • Scots: feal, feele (obsolete)
        • → English: feal
• Occitano-Romance:
  • Old Catalan: feel
  • Old Occitan: fezel
    • Occitan: fidèl, fisèl
• West Iberian:
  • Navarro-Aragonese: *feel, *fedel
    • Aragonese: fel, fiel, hiel, yel
  • Old Spanish: fiel, hiel, פִֿײֵאל
    • Spanish: fiel
  • Old Leonese: *fiel
    • Asturian: fiel
  • Old Galician-Portuguese: fiel
    • Galician: fiel
    • Portuguese: fiel
• Insular Romance:
  • Sardinian: fidele, fideli, fieli
• Borrowings:
  • → Catalan: fidel
  • → French: fidèle
    • → Romanian: fidel
  • → Romansch: fidel

Noun

fidēlis m (genitive fidēlis); third declension

1. a confidant, trustworthy person

Declension

Third-declension noun (i-stem).

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	fidēlis	fidēlēs
Genitive	fidēlis	fidēlium
Dative	fidēlī	fidēlibus
Accusative	fidēlem	fidēlēs fidēlīs
Ablative	fidēle	fidēlibus
Vocative	fidēlis	fidēlēs

Related terms

• fidēlitās
• fīdō
• fīdus

References

• “fidelis”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “fidelis”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• fidelis in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• fidelis in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.