bellum

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈbɛl.lũː]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈbɛl.lum]

Etymology 1

From older form duellum; compare the changes from duis to bis and from duonus to bonus.

Noun

bellum n (genitive bellī); second declension

1. war

   Synonyms: certāmen, certatus, dīmicātiō, duellum, proelium, pugna, rixa

   bellī domīque / bellō domīque / vel bellī vel domī / domī bellōque

   in war and peace

   Dulce bellum inexpertīs.

   War is sweet to those who have never experienced it.

   Sī omnēs opīniōnibus pugnent nōn sint bella.

   If everyone should fight for their own convictions, there would be no wars.

   • 70 BCE, Cicero, In Verrem 2.5.47:

     Nōs semper omnibus Pūnicīs Siciliēnsibusque bellīs amīcitiam fidemque populī Rōmānī secūtī sumus.

     We have always been guided by the friendship and loyalty of the Roman people in all the Punic and Sicilian wars.

   • Flavius Vegetius

     Sī vīs pācem parā bellum.

     If you want peace, prepare for war.

Declension

Second-declension noun (neuter), with locative.

	singular	plural
nominative	bellum	bella
genitive	bellī	bellōrum
dative	bellō	bellīs
accusative	bellum	bella
ablative	bellō	bellīs
vocative	bellum	bella
locative	bellī	—

Locative used in the sense "at war".

Derived terms

• bellicrepus
• bellicus
• bellidux
• bellifer
• belliger
• belligerātiō
• belligerātor
• belligerō
• bellipotēns
• bellisonus

Related terms

• belligerāns
• belligerō
• bellō

Descendants

• →⇒ English: antebellum, interbellum, postbellum (learned)
• →⇒ Romanian: răzbel (learned)

Etymology 2

Inflection of bellus (“pretty”).

Adjective

bellum

1. inflection of bellus:
   1. nominative/accusative/vocative neuter singular
   2. accusative masculine singular

References

• “bellum”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “bellum”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• "bellum", in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• “bellum”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book‎^[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • (ambiguous) to threaten some one with death, crucifixion, torture, war: minitari (minari) alicui mortem, crucem et tormenta, bellum
    
  • (ambiguous) to threaten war, carnage: denuntiare bellum, caedem (Sest. 20. 46)
    
  • (ambiguous) a religious war: bellum pro religionibus susceptum
    
  • (ambiguous) men exempt from service owing to age: qui per aetatem arma ferre non possunt or aetate ad bellum inutiles
    
  • (ambiguous) to charge some one with the conduct of a war: praeficere aliquem bello gerendo
    
  • (ambiguous) the command-in-chief: summa belli, imperii (B. G. 2. 4. 7)
    
  • (ambiguous) to make preparations for war: bellum parare
    
  • (ambiguous) preparations for war; war-material: apparatus (rare in plur.) belli
    
  • (ambiguous) to make formal declaration of war: bellum indīcere, denuntiare
    
  • (ambiguous) a regular, formal war: bellum iustum (pium)
    
  • (ambiguous) a civil war: bellum intestinum, domesticum (opp. bellum externum)
    
  • (ambiguous) to cause a war: bellum facere, movere, excitare
    
  • (ambiguous) to kindle a war: bellum conflare (Fam. 5. 2. 8)
    
  • (ambiguous) to meditate war: bellum moliri
    
  • (ambiguous) to commence hostilities: bellum incipere, belli initium facere (B. G. 7. 1. 5)
    
  • (ambiguous) to interfere in a war: bello se interponere (Liv. 35. 48)
    
  • (ambiguous) to be involved in a war: bello implicari
    
  • (ambiguous) to begin a war with some one: bellum cum aliquo inire
    
  • (ambiguous) a war is imminent: bellum impendet, imminet, instat
    
  • (ambiguous) war breaks out: bellum oritur, exardescit
    
  • (ambiguous) everywhere the torch of war is flaming: omnia bello flagrant or ardent (Fam. 4. 1. 2)
    
  • (ambiguous) to make war on a person: bellum gerere cum aliquo
    
  • (ambiguous) to wage war in conjunction with some one: bellum coniungere (Imp. Pomp. 9. 26)
    
  • (ambiguous) to protract, prolong a war: bellum ducere, trahere, extrahere
    
  • (ambiguous) to carry on a war energetically: omni studio in (ad) bellum incumbere
    
  • (ambiguous) to invade: bellum inferre alicui (Att. 9. 1. 3)
    
  • (ambiguous) to be the aggressor in a war; to act on the offensive: bellum or arma ultro inferre
    
  • (ambiguous) to act on the defensive: bellum (inlatum) defendere
    
  • (ambiguous) to go to war, commence a campaign: proficisci ad bellum, in expeditionem (Sall. Iug. 103)
    
  • (ambiguous) to send to the war: mittere ad bellum
    
  • (ambiguous) to have the control of the war: bellum administrare
    
  • (ambiguous) to harass with war: bello persequi aliquem, lacessere
    
  • (ambiguous) to put an end to war: belli finem facere, bellum finire
    
  • (ambiguous) to terminate a war (by force of arms and defeat of one's opponents): bellum conficere, perficere
    
  • (ambiguous) to terminate a war (by a treaty, etc.: bellum componere (Fam. 10. 33)
    
  • (ambiguous) to transfer the seat of war elsewhere: bellum transferre alio, in...
    
  • (ambiguous) the seat of war, theatre of operations: belli sedes (Liv. 4. 31)
    
  • (ambiguous) to change one's tactics: rationem belli gerendi mutare (Liv. 32. 31)
    
  • (ambiguous) to triumph over some one: triumphare de aliquo (ex bellis)
    
• Dizionario Latino, Olivetti

Old English

Noun

bellum

1. dative plural of belle