nimbus

See also: Nimbus

English

WOTD – 1 December 2006

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin nimbus (“dark cloud”). Doublet of nimb.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈnɪm.bəs/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪmbəs

Noun

nimbus (plural nimbi or nimbuses)

1. A circle of light; a halo.
2. A gray rain cloud.

Usage notes

• (circle of light): In heraldry and art, a nimbus may be considered distinct from a halo. The term halo can refer to an open ring of light or of gold behind the head of a saint, while nimbus refers to a solid disk of light or gold.

Synonyms

• (circle of light): halo

Related terms

• nimbed

Translations

circle of light; halo

• Bulgarian: ореол (bg) f (oreol), нимба f (nimba)
• Catalan: nimbe (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 暈 (zh), 晕 (zh) (yùn), 光環 (zh), 光环 (zh) (guānghuán), 光輪 (zh), 光轮 (zh) (guānglún), 圓光 (zh), 圆光 (zh) (yuánguāng)

• Dutch: nimbus (nl), halo (nl) m
• Finnish: sädekehä (fi)
• French: nimbe (fr) m
• German: Nimbus (de) m
• Indonesian: nimbus
• Italian: nimbo (it) m
• Japanese: 後光 (ja) (ごこう, gokō), 暈 (ja) (かさ, kasa), 光環 (ja) (こうかん, kōkan)

• Latin: nimbus (la) m
• Portuguese: nimbo (pt) m
• Russian: нимб (ru) m (nimb), орео́л (ru) m (oreól)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: нимбус m, ореол m, светокруг m, ауреола f, хало n

  Roman: nimbus (sh) m, oreol (sh) m, svetokrug (sh) m, aureola (sh) f, halo (sh) n

• Swedish: nimbus (sv) c
• Turkish: ayla (tr), hale (tr)
• Welsh: lleugylch m

rain cloud

• Bulgarian: дъждовен облак m (dǎždoven oblak)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 雨雲 (zh), 雨云 (zh) (yǔyún)

• Dutch: nimbus (nl) m
• Finnish: sadepilvi, nimbus (fi)
• French: nimbus (fr) m
• German: Nimbus (de) m
• Indonesian: nimbus
• Japanese: 雨雲 (ja) (あまぐも, amagumo)
• Latin: nimbus (la) m

• Maori: okewa, kēkēao
• Portuguese: nimbo (pt) m
• Russian: дождево́е о́блако n (doždevóje óblako)
• Spanish: nimbo (es) m
• Tagalog: dagim, ulaning alapaap
• Turkish: yağmur bulutu (tr)
• Welsh: nimbws m

See also

• halo

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Catalan

Alternative forms

• nimbe

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin nimbus. Doublet of nimbe.

Noun

nimbus m (plural nimbus)

1. nimbus (cloud)

Further reading

• “nimbus” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

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Finnish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈnimbus/, [ˈnimbus̠]
• Rhymes: -imbus
• Syllabification: nim‧bus

Noun

nimbus

1. Synonym of sadepilvi (“nimbus”)

Declension

Inflection of nimbus (Kotus type 39/vastaus, no gradation)
nominative		nimbus	nimbukset
genitive		nimbuksen	nimbusten nimbuksien
partitive		nimbusta	nimbuksia
illative		nimbukseen	nimbuksiin
		singular	plural
nominative		nimbus	nimbukset
accusative	nom.	nimbus	nimbukset
	gen.	nimbuksen
genitive		nimbuksen	nimbusten nimbuksien
partitive		nimbusta	nimbuksia
inessive		nimbuksessa	nimbuksissa
elative		nimbuksesta	nimbuksista
illative		nimbukseen	nimbuksiin
adessive		nimbuksella	nimbuksilla
ablative		nimbukselta	nimbuksilta
allative		nimbukselle	nimbuksille
essive		nimbuksena	nimbuksina
translative		nimbukseksi	nimbuksiksi
instructive		—	nimbuksin
abessive		nimbuksetta	nimbuksitta
comitative		—	nimbuksineen

Possessive forms of nimbus (type vastaus)
possessor	singular	plural
1st person	nimbukseni	nimbuksemme
2nd person	nimbuksesi	nimbuksenne
3rd person	nimbuksensa

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Latin

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *nébʰos (“cloud”). Cognates include Latin nebula, Proto-Slavic *nebo (“heaven, sky”), Sanskrit नभस् (nábhas, “sky”) and Ancient Greek νέφος (néphos).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈnim.bus/, [ˈnɪmbʊs̠]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈnim.bus/, [ˈnimbus]

Noun

nimbus m (genitive nimbī); second declension

1. rainstorm, rain shower
2. rain cloud, thunder cloud
3. cloud
4. halo (visible aura of divine power)
5. throng
6. (figuratively) calamity, tempest

Declension

Second-declension noun.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	nimbus	nimbī
Genitive	nimbī	nimbōrum
Dative	nimbō	nimbīs
Accusative	nimbum	nimbōs
Ablative	nimbō	nimbīs
Vocative	nimbe	nimbī

Descendants

• → Catalan: nimbe, nimbus
• → English: nimbus
• French: nimbe
• Istriot: nenbo
• Italian: nembo, nimbo

• Portuguese: nimbo
• Russian: нимб (nimb)
• Spanish: nimbo
• Venetian: nenbo

See also

• nebula
• nūbēs
• nūbifer
• nūbigena
• nūbilum
• nūbilus

References

• “nimbus”, in Charlton T[homas] Lewis; Charles [Lancaster] Short (1879) […] A New Latin Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Chicago, Ill.: American Book Company; Oxford: Clarendon Press.
• “nimbus”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• nimbus 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)
• nimbus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré Latin-Français, Hachette

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Romanian

Etymology

From French nimbus.

Noun

nimbus m (plural nimbuși)

1. nimbus

Declension

Declension of nimbus

	singular		plural
	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	(un) nimbus	nimbusul	(niște) nimbuși	nimbușii
genitive/dative	(unui) nimbus	nimbusului	(unor) nimbuși	nimbușilor
vocative	nimbusule		nimbușilor

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Serbo-Croatian

Noun

nimbus m (Cyrillic spelling нимбус)

1. (religion) halo
2. nimbus

Synonyms

• oreol