strikes an object); tonat, it thunders; lucescit and illuces cit (perf. illuxit), it dawns; vesperascit and advesperascit (perf. advesperavit), the evening approaches: in all these cases the subject understood is supposed to be deus or coelum, which are, in fact, often added as their subjects. [§ 229.] 5. The third person singular passive of a great many words, especially of those denoting movement or saying, is, or may be used impersonally, even when the verb is neuter, and has no personal passive, e. g., curritur, they or people run; itur, ventum est, clamatur, fletur, scribitur, bibitur, &c. [§ 230.] 6. All these impersonal verbs, as such, have no imperative, the place of which is supplied by the pres ent subjunctive, e. g., pudeat te, be ashamed of! The participles, also (together with the forms derived from them, the gerund and the infinitive future), are wanting, with a few exceptions, such as libens, licens and liciturus, poenitens and poenitendus, pudendus. CHAPTER LXI. ETYMOLOGY OF NOUNS AND VERBS. [§ 231.] WE have hitherto treated of the changes which one particular form of nouns and verbs, supposed to be known (the nominative in nouns, and the infinitive in verbs), may undergo in forming cases and numbers, persons, tenses, moods, &c. But the origin of that form itself, which is taken as the basis in inflection, is explained in that special branch of the study of language which is called Etymology. Its object is to trace all the words of the language to their roots, and it must, therefore, soon lead us from the Latin to the Greek language, since both are nearly allied, and since the Greek was developed at an earlier period than the Latin. Other languages, too, must be consulted, in order to discover the original forms and significations. We cannot, however, here enter into these investigations, and must content ourselves with ascertaining, within the Latin language itself, the most prominent laws in the formation of new words from other more simple ones; a knowledge of these laws is useful to the beginner, since it facilitates his acquiring the language. But we shall here confine ourselves to nouns (substantive and adjective) and verbs, for the derivation and composi tion of pronouns and numerals have been discussed in a former part of this work; with regard to the (unchangeable) particles, on the other hand, etymology is necessary, as it supplies the place of inflection. The formation of new words from others previously existing takes place either by Derivation, or the addition of certain terminations; or by Composition. In regard to derivation, we have to distinguish primitive and derivative words; and, with regard to composition, simple and compound words. We shall first treat of derivation. I. VERBS. Verbs are derived either from other verbs or from nouns. A. With regard to the former, we distinguish four classes of verbs: 1. Frequentative; 2. Desiderative; 3. Diminutive; and 4. Inchoative. 1. Frequentatives, all of which follow the first conjugation, denote the frequent repetition, or an increase of the action expressed by the primitive verb. They are derived from the supine by changing the regular ātum in the first conjugation into ito, itare; other verbs of the first conjugation, as well as of the others, remain unchanged, the termination of the supine, um, alone being changed into o, are. Of the former kind are, e. g., clamo, clamito; impero, imperito; rogito, volito; of the latter, domo, domitum, domito; adjuvo, adjūtum, adjuto; and from verbs of the third conjugation: curro, cursum, curso; cano, cantum, canto; dico, dictum, dicto; nosco, notum, noto; and so, also, accepto, pulso, defenso, gesto, quasso, tracto. Some of these latter frequentatives, derived from verbs of the third conjugation, serve, again, as primitives, from which new frequentatives are formed; as, cursito, dictito, defensito. There are some double frequentatives of this kind, without the intermediate form of the simple frequentative being used or known; such as actito from ago (acto); and so, also, lectito from lego, scriptito from scribo, haesito from haereo, visito from video, ventito from venio, advento. Some few frequentatives with the termination ito, itare, are not derived from the supine, but from the present of the primitive verb. This formation is necessary when R the primitive verb has no supine, as is the case with lateo, paveo-latito, pavito. But the following are formed in this manner without there being such a reason: agito, noscito, quaerito, cogito. Some frequentatives have the deponential form; as, amplexor, from amplector, minitor from minor, tutor from tueor, scitor and sciscitor from scisco. [§ 232.] 2. Desideratives end in urio, urire (after the fourth conjugation), and express a desire of that which is implied in the primitive. They are formed from the supine of the latter, e. g., esurio, esuris, I want to eat, from edo, esum; so, also, coenaturio from coenatum, dicturio from dictum, empturio from emptum, parturio from partum, and in this manner Cicero (ad Att., ix., 10) jocosely formed Sullaturit et proscripturit, he would like to play the part of Sulla and to proscribe. Note.-Some verbs in urio after the fourth conjugation, such as ligurire, scaturire, prurire, are not desideratives, and it should be observed that the u in these words is long. any [§ 233.] 3. Diminutives have the termination illo, illare, which is added to the stem of the primitive verb without farther change, and they describe the action expressed as something trifling or insignificant; e. g., cantillare, from cantare, to sing in an under voice, or sing with a shaking; conscribillare, scribble; sorbillare, from sorbere, sip. The number of these verbs is not great. [§ 234.] 4. Inchoatives have the termination sco, and follow the third conjugation. They express the beginning of the act or condition denoted by the primitive; e. g., caleo, I am warm; calesco, I am getting or becoming warm; areo, I am dry; aresco, I begin to be dry; langueo, I am languid; languesco, I am becoming languid. It frequently happens that a preposition is prefixed to an inchoative, as in timeo, pertimesco; taceo, conticesco. The vowel preceding the termination sco, scère, is either a (asco), e (esco), or i (isco), according as the inchoative is derived from a primitive of the first, second, or third and fourth conjugation (in the last two cases it is isco); e. g., labasco from labare, totter. pallesco from pallēre, be pale. ingemisco from gemere, sigh. obdormisco from dormire, sleep. Many inchoatives, however, are not derived from verbs, out from substantives and adjectives, e. g., puerasco, I become childish, from puer. maturesco, I become ripe, from maturus, a, um. All inchoatives take their perfect and the tenses derived from it from the primitive verb, or form it as it would be in the primitive. (See Chap. LII., the list of the most important inchoatives.) It must, however, be observed that not all verbs ending in sco are inchoatives. See § 203. [§ 235.] B. In regard to the derivation of verbs from nouns, we see that in general the language followed the principle of giving the termination of the second conjugation to verbs of an intransitive signification, and that of the first to such as have a transitive signification. Thus we have, e. g., (a) flos, floris, florere, bloom. but, frons, frondis, frondere, have foliage. vis, vires, virere, be strong. lux, lucis, lucere, shine. (b) numerus, numerare, count. signum, signare, mark. fraus, fraudis, fraudare, deceive. nomen, nominis, nominare, name. vulnus, vulneris, vulnerare, wound. arma, armare, arm. and from adjectives: albus, albere, be white. liber, a, um, liberare, liberate. memor, memorare, mention. Both kinds are found compounded with prepositions, without the simple verbs themselves being known or much used; e. g., Laqueus, illaqueare, entwine; acervus, coacervare, accumulate; stirps, extirpare, extirpate; hilaris, exhilarare, cheer. the The observation of § 147 must be repeated here, that many deponents of the first conjugation (in ari) are derived from substantives for the purpose of expressing "to be that which the substantive indicates ;" e. g., among first verbs in the list there given, we find aemulari, ancillari, architectari, aucupari, augurari; and, in like manner, comes, comitis, comitari; dominus, dominari; fur, furari. See § 237. The Latin language has much freedom in formations of this kind, and we may even now form similar words, just as Persius invented (or was the first, as far as we know, that used) cornicari, chatter like a crow, and Horace graecari, live luxuriously, like a Gracculus. II. SUBSTANTIVES. [§ 235.] Substantives are derived: A. From Verbs. 1. By the termination or, appended in place of the um of the supine in transitive verbs, to denote a man perform ing the action implied in the verb; e.g., amator, and a great many others. Those which end in tor form feminines in trix; as, fautrix, adjutrix, victrix; and if in some cases no such feminine can be pointed out in the writings that have come down to us, it does not follow, considering the facility of their formation, that there never existed one. In regard to the masculines in sor, the formation of feminines is more difficult, but tonsor makes tonstrix; defensor, defenstrix; and expulsor, throwing out the s, makes expultrix. Some few substantives of this kind ending in tor are formed, also, from nouns; as, aleator, gambler, from alea ; janitor, from janua; viator, from via. 2. The same termination or, when added to the unaltered stem of a word, especially of intransitive verbs, expresses the action or condition denoted by the verb substantively; e. g., pavere, pavor, fear; furĕre, furor, fury; nitere, nitor, shine or gloss. So, also, e. g., ardor, clamor, albor, horror, favor, [§ 237.] 3. Two terminations, viz., io, gen. ionis, and us, gen. us, when added to the supine after throwing off the um, express the action or condition denoted by the verb abstractedly. Both terminations are frequently met with in substantives derived from the same verb, without any material difference; as, concursio and concursus, consensio and consensus; so, also, contemptio and contemptus, digres sio and digressus, motio and motus, potio and potus, tractatio and tractatus, and others. Some verbs in are which have different forms of the supine (see § 171), make, also, substantives of two forms; thus we have fricatio and frictio, lavatio and lotio, potatio and potio, and, according to their analogy, also cubatio and cubitio, although the supine of cubare is cubitum only. |