cliens

Latin

Alternative forms

• cluēns

Etymology

• Possibly an alteration of cluēns, present active participle of clueō (“I am called, named, esteemed”).

Compare typologically Czech zákazník, Russian зака́зчик (zakázčik) (akin to Russian сказа́ть (skazátʹ) < Proto-Slavic *kazati); Ukrainian замо́вник (zamóvnyk) (< мо́вити (móvyty) < Proto-Slavic *mъlviti).

• Alternatively from clīnō (“to lean”). In this case ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱel- (“to incline”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈkli.ẽːs]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈkliː.ens]

Noun

cliēns m or f (genitive clientis); third declension

1. customer
2. client, retainer, follower
3. companion, favorite
4. (of a nation) ally, vassal
5. one under the protection of a particular deity

   cliēns Bacchī — "client of Bacchus"

Declension

Third-declension noun (i-stem).

	singular	plural
nominative	cliēns	clientēs
genitive	clientis	clientium
dative	clientī	clientibus
accusative	clientem	clientīs clientēs
ablative	cliente	clientibus
vocative	cliēns	clientēs

Derived terms

• clienta
• clientēla

Descendants

• → Catalan: client
• → Esperanto: kliento
  • → Ido: kliento
• → Galician: cliente
• → Georgian: კლიენტი (ḳlienṭi)
• → German: Klient (see there for further descendants)
• → Hungarian: kliens
• → Hunsrik: Klïent
• → Italian: cliente
• → Lombard: client
• → Occitan: client
• → Old French: client, clyent
  • French: client (see there for further descendants)
  • → Middle English: client
    • English: client (see there for further descendants)
• → Portuguese: cliente
• → Spanish: cliente
• → Venetan: cliente

References

• “cliens”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “cliens”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• "cliens", in Charles du Fresne du Cange, Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• “cliens”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• “cliens”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin