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morior

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

Latin

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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    From Proto-Italic *moriōr, from Proto-Indo-European *mr̥yétor, from Proto-Indo-European *mer- (“to die”).[1] The oscillation between third and fourth conjugation verbs in this term is comparable to the same variation displayed by other terms with roots ending in -r, such as orior (“to rise, be born”). Moreover, there are some verbs with roots ending in -r that belong to the third conjugation and others to the fourth conjugation, such as the third conjugation term pariō (“to beget”) and the fourth conjugation verb feriō (“to hit”). Weiss tentatively explains this variation as the result of some analogical development, noting that many of these verbs belong to the same semantic field. For instance, morior and orior are antonyms, and pariō can be construed as a causative of orior.[2] Alternatively, Schrivjer interprets this variation is evidence of an original athematic i-present.[3]

    Cognate with Ancient Greek βροτός (brotós, “mortal”), Proto-Germanic *murþaz, Proto-Celtic *marwos, Lithuanian mirti (“death”), Sanskrit मृत्यु (mṛtyú, “death”), Proto-Slavic *merti. Related to mors (“death”).

    Pronunciation

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    Verb

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    morior (present infinitive morī or morīrī, perfect active mortuus sum); third (-iō variant) / fourth conjugation, deponent, no passive

    1. to die, be slain, fall (in battle), perish
      Synonyms: pereō, occumbō, dēfungor, exspīrō, intereō, dēcēdō, cadō, occidō, excēdō, discēdō, dēficiō
      Antonym: vīvō
      • early 2nd century BC, Plautus, Vidularia Fragmenta.7(16):
        malim moriri meos quam mendicarier
        I would prefer my [family members] to die than to beg
      • 29 BCE – 19 BCE, Vergilius, Aeneis 4.659–660:
        “Moriēmur inultae / sed moriāmur”
        “We will die unavenged, but let us die.”
        (Dido here speaks of herself using the royal we or majestic we, which some translations honor, and others alter to first-person singular: “I shall die…”.)
      • 23 BCE – 13 BCE, Horatius, Carmina 3.2.13:
        Dulce et decōrum est prō patriā morī.
        Sweet and fitting it is to die for one's fatherland.
    2. to decay, wither

    Usage notes

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    • Part of a small group of verbs, all with a short-vowel root, displaying both 3rd and 4th conjugation forms. See also potior (“to be master over”), pariō (“to beget”), and orior (“to rise, be born”).

    Conjugation

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       Conjugation of morior (third (-iō variant) / fourth conjugation, deponent, no passive)
    indicative singular plural
    first second third first second third
    active present morior moreris,
    morīris,
    morere,
    morīre     		morī̆tur morī̆mur morī̆minī moriuntur
    imperfect moriēbar moriēbāris,
    moriēbāre     		moriēbātur moriēbāmur moriēbāminī moriēbantur
    future moriar moriēris,
    moriēre     		moriētur moriēmur moriēminī morientur
    perfect mortuus + present active indicative of sum
    pluperfect mortuus + imperfect active indicative of sum
    future perfect mortuus + future active indicative of sum
    subjunctive singular plural
    first second third first second third
    active present moriar moriāris,
    moriāre     		moriātur moriāmur moriāminī moriantur
    imperfect morerer,
    morīrer     		morerēris,
    morīrēris,
    morerēre,
    morīrēre     		morerētur,
    morīrētur     		morerēmur,
    morīrēmur     		morerēminī,
    morīrēminī     		morerentur,
    morīrentur
    perfect mortuus + present active subjunctive of sum
    pluperfect mortuus + imperfect active subjunctive of sum
    imperative singular plural
    first second third first second third
    active present — morere,
    morīre     		— — morī̆minī —
    future — morī̆tor morī̆tor — — moriuntor
    non-finite forms infinitive participle
    active passive active passive
    present morī,
    morīrī     		— moriēns —
    future moritūrum esse — moritūrus —
    perfect mortuum esse — mortuus —
    future perfect mortuum fore — — —
    perfect potential moritūrum fuisse — — —
    verbal nouns gerund supine
    genitive dative accusative ablative accusative ablative
    moriendī moriendō moriendum moriendō mortuum mortuū

    Derived terms

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    Descendants

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    (Several descendants reflect a fourth-conjugation variant (morior, morīrī) attested in Plautus, Ennius, and Ovid.)[4]

    References

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    1. ^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “morior, morī”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, pages 389-390
    2. ^ Weiss, Michael L. (2009), Outline of the Historical and Comparative Grammar of Latin, Ann Arbor: Beech Stave Press, →ISBN, page 144
    3. ^ Schrijver, Peter (2003), “Athematic i-Presents: The Italic and celtic Evidence”, in Incontri linguistici, volume 26, page 74 of 59-86
    4. ^ Coromines, Joan; Pascual, José Antonio (1985), “morir”, in Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico [Critical Castilian and Hispanic etymological dictionary]‎[1] (in Spanish), volume IV (Me–Re), Madrid: Gredos, →ISBN, page 149
    • “morior”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
    • “morior”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
    • “morior”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
    • Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book‎[2], London: Macmillan and Co.
      • (ambiguous) to die at a good old age: exacta aetate mori
      • (ambiguous) to starve oneself to death: inediā mori or vitam finire
      • (ambiguous) to die a natural death: necessaria (opp. voluntaria) morte mori
      • (ambiguous) to die of wounds: ex vulnere mori (Fam. 10. 33)
    • Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002), “mŏri”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), volume 6/3: Mobilis–Myxa, page 137
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