Latin

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Etymology

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From niteō (to shine) +‎ -idus.[1] The extended sense of 'pure, clean' (first attested in Marcellus Empiricus, ca. 400 CE) survives in the Gallo- and Italo-Romance descendants of the word.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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nitidus (feminine nitida, neuter nitidum, comparative nitidior, superlative nitidissimus); first/second-declension adjective

  1. shining, polished, glittering
  2. handsome, beautiful, good-looking
  3. (of persons) healthy-looking, well conditioned
  4. (of animals) sleek, plump
    • Horace, Q. Horatii Flacci Satiræ. The Satires of Horace, in Philip Francis, A Poetical Translation of the Works of Horace, With the Original Text, vol. 2, 1749, publ. by A. Millar, page 178, line 214.
      Si quis lecticâ nitidam geſtare amet agnam;
      If any person should take a delight to carry about with him in his sedan a pretty lambkin
  5. (of plants) blooming, fertile
  6. (of speech or writing) cultivated, refined
  7. (Late Latin) pure, clean

Declension

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First/second-declension adjective.

singular plural
masculine feminine neuter masculine feminine neuter
nominative nitidus nitida nitidum nitidī nitidae nitida
genitive nitidī nitidae nitidī nitidōrum nitidārum nitidōrum
dative nitidō nitidae nitidō nitidīs
accusative nitidum nitidam nitidum nitidōs nitidās nitida
ablative nitidō nitidā nitidō nitidīs
vocative nitide nitida nitidum nitidī nitidae nitida

Descendants

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References

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  1. ^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008) “niteō (> Derivatives: > nitidus)”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 410
  2. ^ “nedo” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Further reading

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