"cuneus" meaning in Latin

See cuneus in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

IPA: [ˈkʊ.ne.ʊs] [Classical-Latin], [ˈkuː.ne.us] (note: modern Italianate Ecclesiastical)
Etymology: Uncertain root, apparently with the suffix -eus. Various problematic comparisons to either Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- (“sharp”) or *ḱúH- (“spike; sting”) (compare Latin culex (“mosquito”), Avestan 𐬯𐬏𐬐𐬁 (sūkā, “needle”), Sanskrit शूक (śūka, “spike, bristle; sting (of an insect)”), शूल (śūla, “spear; stake”) etc.) have been unfruitful; a long vowel (*cūneus) would be expected in the latter case, and the morphology of the -n-eus suffix remains opaque. One possibility is that cuneus is a borrowing from Ancient Greek γώνιος (gṓnios, “corner, angle”) via an Etruscan intermediate which could explain the devoicing, though De Vaan finds this unconvincing. Compare cunnus (“vagina”, derogatory), also of uncertain origin, as well as cutis (“skin”). Etymology templates: {{unc|la}} Uncertain, {{af|la|-eus}} -eus, {{der|la|ine-pro|*h₂eḱ-||sharp}} Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- (“sharp”), {{m+|la|culex||mosquito}} Latin culex (“mosquito”), {{cog|ae|𐬯𐬏𐬐𐬁||needle}} Avestan 𐬯𐬏𐬐𐬁 (sūkā, “needle”), {{cog|sa|शूक||spike, bristle; sting (of an insect)}} Sanskrit शूक (śūka, “spike, bristle; sting (of an insect)”), {{der|la|grc|γώνιος||corner, angle}} Ancient Greek γώνιος (gṓnios, “corner, angle”), {{bor|la|ett|-}} Etruscan Head templates: {{la-noun|cuneus<2>}} cuneus m (genitive cuneī); second declension Inflection templates: {{la-ndecl|cuneus<2>}} Forms: cuneī [genitive], no-table-tags [table-tags], cuneus [nominative, singular], cuneī [nominative, plural], cuneī [genitive, singular], cuneōrum [genitive, plural], cuneō [dative, singular], cuneīs [dative, plural], cuneum [accusative, singular], cuneōs [accusative, plural], cuneō [ablative, singular], cuneīs [ablative, plural], cunee [singular, vocative], cuneī [plural, vocative]
  1. wedge, wedge shape Tags: declension-2, masculine
    Sense id: en-cuneus-la-noun-XM95KjoF
  2. (military) troops arrayed in a wedge formation Tags: declension-2, masculine
    Sense id: en-cuneus-la-noun-xeZ~BqD2 Categories (other): Military, Latin entries with incorrect language header, Latin masculine nouns in the second declension, Latin terms suffixed with -eus Disambiguation of Latin entries with incorrect language header: 3 73 3 20 Disambiguation of Latin masculine nouns in the second declension: 20 37 21 23 Disambiguation of Latin terms suffixed with -eus: 8 56 8 28 Topics: government, military, politics, war
  3. (military, figuratively) an army Tags: declension-2, figuratively, masculine
    Sense id: en-cuneus-la-noun-gsu-yVml Categories (other): Military Topics: government, military, politics, war
  4. (theater) a block of seats Tags: declension-2, masculine
    Sense id: en-cuneus-la-noun-AWHk~53P Categories (other): Theater Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, theater
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Derived forms: cuneifōrmis, cuneō, cuneolus, cuneātim Related terms: cunīculus, cunnus, cōnus

Inflected forms

{
  "derived": [
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
      "word": "cuneifōrmis"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
      "word": "cuneō"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
      "word": "cuneolus"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
      "word": "cuneātim"
    }
  ],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Vulgar Latin",
      "lang_code": "la",
      "raw_tags": [
        "reshaped by analogy or addition of morphemes"
      ],
      "word": "*cunea"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la"
      },
      "expansion": "Uncertain",
      "name": "unc"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "-eus"
      },
      "expansion": "-eus",
      "name": "af"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*h₂eḱ-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "sharp"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- (“sharp”)",
      "name": "der"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "culex",
        "3": "",
        "4": "mosquito"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin culex (“mosquito”)",
      "name": "m+"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "ae",
        "2": "𐬯𐬏𐬐𐬁",
        "3": "",
        "4": "needle"
      },
      "expansion": "Avestan 𐬯𐬏𐬐𐬁 (sūkā, “needle”)",
      "name": "cog"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "sa",
        "2": "शूक",
        "3": "",
        "4": "spike, bristle; sting (of an insect)"
      },
      "expansion": "Sanskrit शूक (śūka, “spike, bristle; sting (of an insect)”)",
      "name": "cog"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "grc",
        "3": "γώνιος",
        "4": "",
        "5": "corner, angle"
      },
      "expansion": "Ancient Greek γώνιος (gṓnios, “corner, angle”)",
      "name": "der"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "ett",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Etruscan",
      "name": "bor"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Uncertain root, apparently with the suffix -eus. Various problematic comparisons to either Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- (“sharp”) or *ḱúH- (“spike; sting”) (compare Latin culex (“mosquito”), Avestan 𐬯𐬏𐬐𐬁 (sūkā, “needle”), Sanskrit शूक (śūka, “spike, bristle; sting (of an insect)”), शूल (śūla, “spear; stake”) etc.) have been unfruitful; a long vowel (*cūneus) would be expected in the latter case, and the morphology of the -n-eus suffix remains opaque. One possibility is that cuneus is a borrowing from Ancient Greek γώνιος (gṓnios, “corner, angle”) via an Etruscan intermediate which could explain the devoicing, though De Vaan finds this unconvincing. Compare cunnus (“vagina”, derogatory), also of uncertain origin, as well as cutis (“skin”).",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "cuneī",
      "tags": [
        "genitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "no-table-tags",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "table-tags"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "la-ndecl",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "inflection-template"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneus",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "nominative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneī",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "nominative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneī",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "genitive",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneōrum",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "genitive",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneō",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "dative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneīs",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "dative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneum",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "accusative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneōs",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "accusative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneō",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "ablative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneīs",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "ablative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cunee",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "singular",
        "vocative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneī",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "plural",
        "vocative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "cuneus<2>"
      },
      "expansion": "cuneus m (genitive cuneī); second declension",
      "name": "la-noun"
    }
  ],
  "inflection_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "cuneus<2>"
      },
      "name": "la-ndecl"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "Latin",
  "lang_code": "la",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
      "word": "cunīculus"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
      "word": "cunnus"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
      "word": "cōnus"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "wedge, wedge shape"
      ],
      "id": "en-cuneus-la-noun-XM95KjoF",
      "links": [
        [
          "wedge",
          "wedge"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "declension-2",
        "masculine"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "la",
          "name": "Military",
          "orig": "la:Military",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "3 73 3 20",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Latin entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "20 37 21 23",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Latin masculine nouns in the second declension",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "8 56 8 28",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Latin terms suffixed with -eus",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "troops arrayed in a wedge formation"
      ],
      "id": "en-cuneus-la-noun-xeZ~BqD2",
      "links": [
        [
          "military",
          "military"
        ],
        [
          "troop",
          "troop"
        ],
        [
          "wedge",
          "wedge"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(military) troops arrayed in a wedge formation"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "declension-2",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "government",
        "military",
        "politics",
        "war"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "la",
          "name": "Military",
          "orig": "la:Military",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "an army"
      ],
      "id": "en-cuneus-la-noun-gsu-yVml",
      "links": [
        [
          "military",
          "military"
        ],
        [
          "army",
          "army"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(military, figuratively) an army"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "declension-2",
        "figuratively",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "government",
        "military",
        "politics",
        "war"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "la",
          "name": "Theater",
          "orig": "la:Theater",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "a block of seats"
      ],
      "id": "en-cuneus-la-noun-AWHk~53P",
      "links": [
        [
          "theater",
          "theater"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(theater) a block of seats"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "declension-2",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "entertainment",
        "lifestyle",
        "theater"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈkʊ.ne.ʊs]",
      "tags": [
        "Classical-Latin"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈkuː.ne.us]",
      "note": "modern Italianate Ecclesiastical"
    }
  ],
  "word": "cuneus"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "Latin 3-syllable words",
    "Latin entries with incorrect language header",
    "Latin lemmas",
    "Latin masculine nouns",
    "Latin masculine nouns in the second declension",
    "Latin nouns",
    "Latin second declension nouns",
    "Latin terms borrowed from Etruscan",
    "Latin terms derived from Ancient Greek",
    "Latin terms derived from Etruscan",
    "Latin terms derived from Proto-Indo-European",
    "Latin terms suffixed with -eus",
    "Latin terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "Latin terms with unknown etymologies",
    "Pages with 2 entries",
    "Pages with entries"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "cuneifōrmis"
    },
    {
      "word": "cuneō"
    },
    {
      "word": "cuneolus"
    },
    {
      "word": "cuneātim"
    }
  ],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Vulgar Latin",
      "lang_code": "la",
      "raw_tags": [
        "reshaped by analogy or addition of morphemes"
      ],
      "word": "*cunea"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la"
      },
      "expansion": "Uncertain",
      "name": "unc"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "-eus"
      },
      "expansion": "-eus",
      "name": "af"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*h₂eḱ-",
        "4": "",
        "5": "sharp"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- (“sharp”)",
      "name": "der"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "culex",
        "3": "",
        "4": "mosquito"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin culex (“mosquito”)",
      "name": "m+"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "ae",
        "2": "𐬯𐬏𐬐𐬁",
        "3": "",
        "4": "needle"
      },
      "expansion": "Avestan 𐬯𐬏𐬐𐬁 (sūkā, “needle”)",
      "name": "cog"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "sa",
        "2": "शूक",
        "3": "",
        "4": "spike, bristle; sting (of an insect)"
      },
      "expansion": "Sanskrit शूक (śūka, “spike, bristle; sting (of an insect)”)",
      "name": "cog"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "grc",
        "3": "γώνιος",
        "4": "",
        "5": "corner, angle"
      },
      "expansion": "Ancient Greek γώνιος (gṓnios, “corner, angle”)",
      "name": "der"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "la",
        "2": "ett",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Etruscan",
      "name": "bor"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Uncertain root, apparently with the suffix -eus. Various problematic comparisons to either Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- (“sharp”) or *ḱúH- (“spike; sting”) (compare Latin culex (“mosquito”), Avestan 𐬯𐬏𐬐𐬁 (sūkā, “needle”), Sanskrit शूक (śūka, “spike, bristle; sting (of an insect)”), शूल (śūla, “spear; stake”) etc.) have been unfruitful; a long vowel (*cūneus) would be expected in the latter case, and the morphology of the -n-eus suffix remains opaque. One possibility is that cuneus is a borrowing from Ancient Greek γώνιος (gṓnios, “corner, angle”) via an Etruscan intermediate which could explain the devoicing, though De Vaan finds this unconvincing. Compare cunnus (“vagina”, derogatory), also of uncertain origin, as well as cutis (“skin”).",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "cuneī",
      "tags": [
        "genitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "no-table-tags",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "table-tags"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "la-ndecl",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "inflection-template"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneus",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "nominative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneī",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "nominative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneī",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "genitive",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneōrum",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "genitive",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneō",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "dative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneīs",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "dative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneum",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "accusative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneōs",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "accusative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneō",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "ablative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneīs",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "ablative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cunee",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "singular",
        "vocative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "cuneī",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "plural",
        "vocative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "cuneus<2>"
      },
      "expansion": "cuneus m (genitive cuneī); second declension",
      "name": "la-noun"
    }
  ],
  "inflection_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "cuneus<2>"
      },
      "name": "la-ndecl"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "Latin",
  "lang_code": "la",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "cunīculus"
    },
    {
      "word": "cunnus"
    },
    {
      "word": "cōnus"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "wedge, wedge shape"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "wedge",
          "wedge"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "declension-2",
        "masculine"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "la:Military"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "troops arrayed in a wedge formation"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "military",
          "military"
        ],
        [
          "troop",
          "troop"
        ],
        [
          "wedge",
          "wedge"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(military) troops arrayed in a wedge formation"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "declension-2",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "government",
        "military",
        "politics",
        "war"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "la:Military"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "an army"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "military",
          "military"
        ],
        [
          "army",
          "army"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(military, figuratively) an army"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "declension-2",
        "figuratively",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "government",
        "military",
        "politics",
        "war"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "la:Theater"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "a block of seats"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "theater",
          "theater"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(theater) a block of seats"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "declension-2",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "entertainment",
        "lifestyle",
        "theater"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈkʊ.ne.ʊs]",
      "tags": [
        "Classical-Latin"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈkuː.ne.us]",
      "note": "modern Italianate Ecclesiastical"
    }
  ],
  "word": "cuneus"
}

Download raw JSONL data for cuneus meaning in Latin (5.2kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable Latin dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-12-26 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-12-20 using wiktextract (cdfa371 and 9905b1f). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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