splen

Latin

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek σπλήν (splḗn, “milt”). Doublet of liēn.

Noun

splēn m (genitive splēnis); third declension

1. spleen, milt

Declension

Third-declension noun.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	splēn	splēnēs
Genitive	splēnis	splēnum
Dative	splēnī	splēnibus
Accusative	splēnem	splēnēs
Ablative	splēne	splēnibus
Vocative	splēn	splēnēs

Synonyms

• liēn

Derived terms

• splēnēticus
• splēnicus

Descendants

• Old French: esplen m, espleen (Anglo-Norman), esplein
  • → Middle English: splene, splen
    • English: spleen (see there for further descendants)
• → Italian: splene
• Romanian: splină f
• Spanish: esplene

References

• “splen”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• splen in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.