libra
English edit
Etymology edit
From Latin lībra (“pound”), partially via Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese libra. Doublet of lira, livre, libbre, liter, rottol, and arratel.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
libra (plural libras or librae) (Roman contexts)
- (historical) A Roman unit of mass, usually equivalent to 327 g.
- (historical) A traditional Spanish unit of mass, usually around 460 g.
- (historical) A traditional Portuguese unit of mass, usually equivalent to 345 g and particularly used for trade in medicines.
- (historical) Synonym of arratel, a separate Portuguese unit of mass, usually around 460 g.
- (historical) Alternative spelling of libbra, a traditional Italian unit of mass.
- (historical) Synonym of pound, a notional pound of silver as a money of account, especially in medieval contexts.
Synonyms edit
- (Roman unit of mass): Roman pound, pound (Roman contexts)
- (Spanish unit of mass): Spanish pound, pound (Spanish contexts)
- (Portuguese unit of mass): Portuguese pound, pound (Portuguese contexts, but more often used for the arratel)
Coordinate terms edit
- (Roman unit of mass): uncia (1⁄12 libra)
- (Spanish unit of mass): onza (1⁄16 libra), cuarteron (1⁄4 libra), marco (1⁄1 libra), arroba (25 libras), quintal (100 libras), tonelada (2,000 libras)
- (Portuguese unit of mass): oitava (usually 1⁄72 libra), onça (usually 1⁄12 libra), quarta (usually 1⁄3 libra), marco (usually 2⁄3 libra), arratel (usually 11⁄3 libras)
References edit
Anagrams edit
Czech edit
Pronunciation edit
Audio (file)
Noun edit
libra f
Declension edit
Further reading edit
Galician edit
Etymology 1 edit
From Old Galician-Portuguese livra, attested in the 13th-century Cantigas de Santa Maria, from Latin libra (“Roman pound”). Doublet of lira. In reference to the English unit, a calque of English pound. Cognate with Portuguese and Spanish libra and Catalan lliura.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
libra f (plural libras)
- English or American pound, a unit of mass equivalent to 453.6 g
- (historical) Galician pound, a unit of mass equivalent to about 575 g
- (historical) libra, Spanish pound, a unit of mass equivalent to about 460 g
- British pound, a unit of British currency originally notionally equal to a pound of sterling silver
- Synonym: libra esterlina
- (chiefly historical) pound, other similar currencies originally notionally equal to a pound of gold or silver
Coordinate terms edit
Noun edit
libra m or f by sense (plural libras)
- Libra (someone with the Libra star sign)
Related terms edit
References edit
- “libra” in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval, SLI - ILGA 2006–2022.
- “libra” in Xavier Varela Barreiro & Xavier Gómez Guinovart: Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval. SLI / Grupo TALG / ILG, 2006–2018.
- “libra” in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega, SLI - ILGA 2006–2013.
- “libra” in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega. Santiago: ILG.
- “libra” in Álvarez, Rosario (coord.): Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués, Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega.
Etymology 2 edit
Verb edit
libra
- inflection of librar:
Italian edit
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
libra f (plural libre)
Latin edit
Etymology 1 edit
Of uncertain origin. The word's original form was something like Proto-Italic *līðra, *leiðra (“pound”), surviving also in Ancient Greek λίτρα (lítra), whence English liter.[1]
Weiss derives the term from Proto-Indo-European *leyH- (“to pour”) suffixed with the instrumental/resultative suffix *-dʰrom, under the assumption that the term originally meant "pouring (of metal)" before evolving to mean a unit of weight.[2] In this case, then cognate with Proto-Slavic *lìti (“to pour”), Proto-Celtic *liyeti (“to flow”), Ancient Greek λείβω (leíbō, “to pour”), Lithuanian líeti (“to let flow”).
Pronunciation edit
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈliː.bra/, [ˈlʲiːbrä]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈli.bra/, [ˈliːbrä]
Noun edit
lībra f (genitive lībrae); first declension
- (historical) libra, Roman pound, a Roman unit of mass, equivalent to about 327 g
- scales, a tool used to balance two weights to measure amounts
- level, a tool used to check surfaces for horizontal and vertical alignment
- (Medieval Latin, New Latin) pound, any of various units of mass derived from or roughly equivalent to the Roman libra
- (Medieval Latin, New Latin) pound, any of various currencies derived from the use of pound as a weight in silver
Declension edit
First-declension noun.
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | lībra | lībrae |
| Genitive | lībrae | lībrārum |
| Dative | lībrae | lībrīs |
| Accusative | lībram | lībrās |
| Ablative | lībrā | lībrīs |
| Vocative | lībra | lībrae |
Synonyms edit
Coordinate terms edit
Related terms edit
Descendants edit
Etymology 2 edit
Pronunciation edit
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈliː.braː/, [ˈlʲiːbräː]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈli.bra/, [ˈliːbrä]
Verb edit
lībrā
References edit
- ^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008) “lībra”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 339
- ^ Michael Weiss, "The Etymology of Latin lībra", conference paper presented at the SCS Greek and Latin Linguistics Panel on January 5, 2021
Further reading edit
- “libra”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “libra”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- libra 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)
- libra in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
- Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
- (ambiguous) to make extracts from Cicero's writings: aliquid, multa ex Ciceronis libris excerpere (not excerpere librum)
- (ambiguous) to make extracts from Cicero's writings: aliquid, multa ex Ciceronis libris excerpere (not excerpere librum)
- “libra”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
- libra in Ramminger, Johann (2016 July 16 (last accessed)) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700[2], pre-publication website, 2005-2016
- “libra”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin
Portuguese edit
Etymology edit
From Latin libra (“Roman pound”). Doublet of arrátel. In reference to the English unit, a calque of English pound. Cognate with Galician and Spanish libra and Catalan lliura.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
libra f (plural libras)
- English or American pound, a unit of mass equal to 454 g
- pound, British and other currencies derived from the use of a pound as a weight in silver
- (historical) libra, Portuguese pound, a traditional unit of mass usually equivalent to 345 g and chiefly used for trade in medicines
- (historical) Synonym of arrátel, Portuguese pound, a traditional unit of mass usually equivalent to 460 g
Coordinate terms edit
Spanish edit
Pronunciation edit
Etymology 1 edit
From Latin libra (“Roman pound, scale”). Doublet of lira. In reference to the English unit, a calque of English pound. Cognate with Galician and Portuguese libra and Catalan lliura.
Noun edit
libra f (plural libras)
- English or American pound avoirdupois (a unit of mass equivalent to 453.6 g)
- (historical) libra, Spanish pound (a traditional unit of mass equivalent to about 460 g)
- British pound (the currency of the United Kingdom and its dependencies, originally notionally equivalent to a pound of stirling silver)
- Synonym: libra esterlina
- (chiefly historical) pound (various other currencies originally notionally equivalent to a pound of gold or silver)
Coordinate terms edit
- (English unit of mass): grano (1⁄7000 libra), onza (1⁄16 libra), tonelada (2,000 or 2,240 libras)
- (Spanish unit of mass): grano (1⁄9216 libra), onza (1⁄16 libra), cuarterón (1⁄4 libra), marco (1⁄2 libra), arroba (25 libras), quintal (100 libras), tonelada (2,000 libras)
Noun edit
libra m or f by sense (plural libras)
- Libra (someone with the Libra star sign)
Related terms edit
Etymology 2 edit
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Verb edit
libra
- inflection of librar:
Further reading edit
- “libra”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014
Tagalog edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from Spanish libra, from Latin libra.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
libra (Baybayin spelling ᜎᜒᜊ᜔ᜇ)
- pound (unit of mass or force/weight)