tetricus
Latin
editAlternative forms
editEtymology
editUnknown.[1] The hypothesis presented by Lewis and Short that it is from taeter (“foul, repulsive”) seems to be based on the assumption that this word shows monophthongization of an original diphthong ae to the long vowel ē, but that is contradicted by a number of examples of the first syllable scanning short in poetry.
Pronunciation
edit- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): /ˈte.tri.kus/, [ˈt̪ɛt̪rɪkʊs̠] or IPA(key): /ˈtet.ri.kus/, [ˈt̪ɛt̪rɪkʊs̠]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈte.tri.kus/, [ˈt̪ɛːt̪rikus] or IPA(key): /ˈtet.ri.kus/, [ˈt̪ɛt̪rikus]
Adjective
edittetricus (feminine tetrica, neuter tetricum); first/second-declension adjective
- forbidding, harsh, crabbed, gloomy, sour, stern, severe
- 16 BCE, Ovid, The Loves 3.3:
- Si deus ipse forem, numen sine fraude liceret
femina mendaci falleret ore meum;
ipse ego iurarem verum iurare puellas
et non de tetricis dicerer esse deus.- Translation by Christopher Marlowe
- Were I a god, I should give women leave,
With lying lips my godhead to deceive.
Myself would swear the wenches true did swear,
And I would be none of the gods severe.
- Were I a god, I should give women leave,
- Translation by Christopher Marlowe
- Si deus ipse forem, numen sine fraude liceret
Declension
editFirst/second-declension adjective.
Number | Singular | Plural | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Case / Gender | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | |
Nominative | tetricus | tetrica | tetricum | tetricī | tetricae | tetrica | |
Genitive | tetricī | tetricae | tetricī | tetricōrum | tetricārum | tetricōrum | |
Dative | tetricō | tetricō | tetricīs | ||||
Accusative | tetricum | tetricam | tetricum | tetricōs | tetricās | tetrica | |
Ablative | tetricō | tetricā | tetricō | tetricīs | |||
Vocative | tetrice | tetrica | tetricum | tetricī | tetricae | tetrica |
Synonyms
editDescendants
editReferences
edit- ^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008) “tetricus”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 618
- ^ Ruurd R. Nauta (2002) Poetry for Patrons: Literary Communication in the Age of Domitian, Brill, →ISBN, page 341.
Further reading
edit- “taetricus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- taetricus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.