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Latin Diminutive
The Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ... language has a robust diminutive-forming system. There are many diminutive suffixes: those in ''calculus, axilla, fistula'', and ''areola'' to start. There is often more than one correct way to form a diminutive, and many more incorrect ones. Gender The masculine, feminine, and neuter diminutives often end in ''-us, -a, and -um.'' * later, -is (m.) > later-cul-us (m.) * mulier, -is (f.) > mulier-cul-a (f.) * tūber, -is (n.) > tūber-cul-um (n.) There are exceptions. These masculine words end in -a: * scurr-a (m.) > scurr-ul-a (m.) * vern-a (m.) > vern-ul-a (m.) Many have a vowel, followed by one or two ls, followed by the endings just mentioned. Here we see stem + 'ul' + ending. The rules can be a bit involved. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the Roman Republic it became the dominant language in the Italian region and subsequently throughout the Roman Empire. Even after the fall of Western Rome, Latin remained the common language of international communication, science, scholarship and academia in Europe until well into the 18th century, when other regional vernaculars (including its own descendants, the Romance languages) supplanted it in common academic and political usage, and it eventually became a dead language in the modern linguistic definition. Latin is a highly inflected language, with three distinct genders (masculine, feminine, and neuter), six or seven noun cases (nominative, accusative, genitive, dative, ablative, and vocative), five declensions, four verb conjug ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diminutive
A diminutive is a root word that has been modified to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment. A ( abbreviated ) is a word-formation device used to express such meanings. In many languages, such forms can be translated as "little" and diminutives can also be formed as multi-word constructions such as " Tiny Tim". Diminutives are often employed as nicknames and pet names when speaking to small children and when expressing extreme tenderness and intimacy to an adult. The opposite of the diminutive form is the augmentative. Beyond the ''diminutive form'' of a single word, a ''diminutive'' can be a multi-word name, such as "Tiny Tim" or "Little Dorrit". In many languages, formation of diminutives by adding suffixes is a productive part of the language. For example, in Spanish can be a nickname for someone who is overweight, and by adding an suffix, it becomes wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
