nitidus

nitidus

Latin

FWOTD – 31 July 2019

Etymology

    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

    Adjective

    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

    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

    • Balkano-Romance:
      • Romanian: neted (“smooth, clear”)
    • Rhaeto-Romance:
      • Ladin: nët, nëidi
      • Romansh: neidi, naidi
    • Gallo-Italic:
      • Lombard: nédi
    • Gallo-Romance:
      • Old Catalan: nèdeu (“clean”)
        • Catalan: nèdeu, nèdio, nèdol, nedo (“pasturage”)[2]
      • Old Occitan: nede, ⇒ nedas
    • Ibero-Romance:
      • Old Leonese:
        • Asturian: nidiu, ñidiu
        • Leonese: nidiu
      • Old Galician-Portuguese: nedio
      • Old Spanish: nidio
    • Insular Romance:
      • Sardinian: innitu, innidu, indidu, binnidu
    • ⇒ Vulgar Latin: *nittus (via syncope; see there for further descendants)
    • Borrowings:

    References

    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. ^ Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “nedo”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)

    Further reading

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