praeceptor

See also: præceptor

Latin

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *per-

Proto-Indo-European *preh₂-

Proto-Indo-European *-i

Proto-Indo-European *préh₂i?

Proto-Italic *prai

Proto-Italic *prai-

Latin prae-

Proto-Indo-European *kap-

Proto-Indo-European *-yéti

Proto-Indo-European *kapyéti

Proto-Italic *kapjō

Old Latin kapiō

Latin capiō

Latin praecipiō

Proto-Indo-European *-tōr

Proto-Italic *-tōr

Latin -tor

Latin praeceptor

From praecipiō + -tor.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [prae̯ˈkɛp.tɔr]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [preˈt͡ʃɛp.tor]

Noun

praeceptor m (genitive praeceptōris); third declension

1. teacher, instructor, tutor, preceptor

   Synonym: magister

   • 2 CE, Ovidius, Ars Amatoria 1.17:

     Aeacidae Chīrōn, ego sum praeceptor Amōris

     Chiron was tutor to Achilles; I am tutor to Love.

2. (post-Augustan) commander, ruler
   • c. 177 CE, Aulus Gellius, Noctes Atticae 1.13.8

Declension

Third-declension noun.

	singular	plural
nominative	praeceptor	praeceptōrēs
genitive	praeceptōris	praeceptōrum
dative	praeceptōrī	praeceptōribus
accusative	praeceptōrem	praeceptōrēs
ablative	praeceptōre	praeceptōribus
vocative	praeceptor	praeceptōrēs

Descendants

• → English: preceptor
• → French: précepteur
• → German: Präzeptor
  • → Lower Sorbian: ceptaŕ
• → Italian: precettore
• → Polish: preceptor
• → Romanian: preceptor
• → Spanish: perceptor

References

• “praeceptor”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “praeceptor”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• "praeceptor", 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)
• “praeceptor”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.