lacuna

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English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Learned borrowing from Latin lacūna (a ditch, pit; a hollow, cavity; a gap, defect). Doublet of lacune and lagoon.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ləˈk(j)uː.nə/
  • (file)
  • (file)
  • Rhymes: -uːnə

Noun[edit]

lacuna (plural lacunae or (obsolete) lacunæ or lacunas)

  1. (particularly anatomy) A small opening; a small pit or depression, especially in bone.
    1. (microscopy) A space visible between cells, allowing free passage of light.
  2. A small blank space; a gap or vacancy; a hiatus.
    1. An absent part, especially in a book or other piece of writing, often referring to an ancient manuscript or similar.
      Long lacunae in this inscription make interpretation difficult.
    2. Any gap, break, hole, or lack in a set of things; something missing.
      • 2019, Huang, Li; James Lambert, “Another Arrow for the Quiver: A New Methodology for Multilingual Researchers”, in Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, volume 41, number 7, →DOI, page 577:
        If the researcher cannot adequately hear a specific conversation due to its low volume or other acoustic interference, then this data point can be passed over with the understanding that such lacunae will be randomly distributed over the data collecting period.
    3. (translation studies) A language gap, which occurs when there is no direct translation in the target language for a lexical term found in the source language.
      Synonym: anisomorphism

Synonyms[edit]

Derived terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

Further reading[edit]

Anagrams[edit]

Italian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from Latin lacūna. Compare the inherited doublet laguna.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /laˈku.na/
  • Rhymes: -una
  • Hyphenation: la‧cù‧na

Noun[edit]

lacuna f (plural lacune)

  1. gap
  2. blank (space)
  3. lapse (of memory)

Derived terms[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • lacuna in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Anagrams[edit]

Latin[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From lacus (a lake, pond; a basin, tank, cistern).

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

lacūna f (genitive lacūnae); first declension

  1. (literally, chiefly poetic) a hole, pit, ditch; (especially) a pool, pond
    1. (generally) an opening, cavity, hollow, cleft, chasm
  2. (figurative, rare, Classical Latin) a gap, void, defect, want, loss

Inflection[edit]

First-declension noun.

Case Singular Plural
Nominative lacūna lacūnae
Genitive lacūnae lacūnārum
Dative lacūnae lacūnīs
Accusative lacūnam lacūnās
Ablative lacūnā lacūnīs
Vocative lacūna lacūnae

Synonyms[edit]

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Descendants[edit]

References[edit]

  • lacuna”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  • lacuna”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
  • lacuna 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)
  • lacuna in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette
  • lacuna”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
  • lacuna in Ramminger, Johann (accessed 16 July 2016) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700[1], pre-publication website, 2005-2016

Portuguese[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Learned borrowing from Latin lacūna.[1][2] Compare the inherited lagoa and laguna.

Pronunciation[edit]

 

  • Hyphenation: la‧cu‧na

Noun[edit]

lacuna f (plural lacunas)

  1. hiatus (gap in a series)
    Synonym: hiato
  2. blank (space to be filled in)

Related terms[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ lacuna” in Dicionário infopédia da Língua Portuguesa. Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2023.
  2. ^ lacuna” in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa.

Romanian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

lacuna f

  1. definite nominative/accusative singular of lacună