See Also: un-Latin(dictionary)
latin(medicine)
neo-latin(medicine)
Latin(1)(dictionary)
Latin(2)(dictionary)
Latin 2, adjective(dictionary)
Latin America(dictionary)
Latin American(dictionary)
Latin Quarter(dictionary)
INFRA, Latin(law)

Latin(1) (iou)



Latin adjective & noun. OE.
[Latin Latinus, from Latium: see below, -INE1. Cf. LIDDEN.]
A. adjective.
Pertaining to, characteristic of, composed in, or using Latin (see sense B.1 below). OE.
Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost Remuneration! O, that's the Latin word for three farthings.
Of or pertaining to ancient Latium, the area of central Italy which included Rome, or its inhabitants. ME.
spec. Designating or pertaining to the branch of the Christian church which once used Latin in all its rites; Roman Catholic. M16.
Hist. Of or pertaining to the peoples of western Europe, viewed in their relations with the Ottoman Empire and with the Saracens and Turks. arch. L18.
Pertaining to or characteristic of the European and American peoples speaking languages developed from Latin; spec. Latin American. M19.
R. W. Emerson The Teutonic tribes have a national singleness of heart, which contrasts with the Latin races. Derek Robinson He stood..snapping his fingers to a Latin beat. V. Glendinning He was extrovert, physical, unstable, and very Latin.
Special collocations & comb.: Latin America the countries in Central and S. America in which Spanish or Portuguese is the dominant language. Latin American adjective & noun (a) adjective belonging to or derived from Latin America; spec. designating a class of ballroom dancing consisting of dances of Latin American origin or inspiration, such as the rumba, samba, cha-cha-cha, etc.; (b) noun a native or inhabitant of a Latin American country. Latin cross a plain cross with the lowest member longer than the other three. Latin language = sense B.1 below. Latin letter a letter of the Roman alphabet. Latin Quarter [French Quartier Latin] the district of Paris on the left or south bank of the Seine, where Latin was spoken in the Middle Ages, and where students and artists live and the principal university buildings are situated. Latin rights [Latin ius Latii] Roman History a set of privileges, falling short of full citizenship, enjoyed by inhabitants of Latium and from 89 BC on extended to people outside Italy. Latin rite a religious ceremonial using Latin, esp. in the Roman Catholic Church. Latin square an arrangement of letters etc. each occurring n times, in a square array of n2 compartments so that no letter appears twice in the same row or column; such an arrangement used as the basis of experimental procedures in which it is desired to control or allow for two sources of variability while investigating a third.
b. noun.
The Italic language (orig. the dialect of Latium) spoken in ancient Rome and its empire, which was used internationally in the Middle Ages as a medium of communication among educated people. With specifying word: a particular form, phase, etc., of Latin. OE.
ecclesiastical Latin, popular Latin, etc.
B. Moore Mass..said in Latin because Latin was the language of the Church.
b. A translation into Latin, as a school exercise. Usu. in pl. L15-L17.
A native or inhabitant of Latium; Roman History a person who enjoyed the Latin rights. Formerly also, a speaker of Latin, a Latin author, (usu. in pl.). LME.
A member or adherent of the Latin Church, esp. one living in the Orient. Now rare. LME.
Hist. A person belonging to any of the Western nations of Europe during the Crusades. arch. L18.
A native or inhabitant of any of the various countries in Europe (France, Italy, Spain, etc.) and America whose language is developed from Latin; spec. a Latin American. L19.
Phrases: classical Latin: before about AD 200 esp. between about 100 BC and AD 14. dog Latin: see DOG noun. late Latin: from about 150 to 600. law Latin: see LAW noun1. Low Latin: see LOW adjective & noun4. medieval Latin: from about 600 to 1500. modern Latin: since 1500, used esp. in scientific classification. Old Latin: before about 100 BC. pig Latin: see PIG noun1. silver Latin: see SILVER noun & adjective. thieves' Latin the secret language or slang of thieves. Vulgar Latin: see VULGAR adjective.
Comb.: Latin school US a school offering Latin (and sometimes Greek) as part of the syllabus.
Lati'nesque adjective resembling Latin, having a Latin character L19.
Latinish adjective (rare) resembling Latin E17.
Latinless adjective without knowledge of Latin M16.
Latinly adverb (now rare) (a) in (good or pure) Latin; (b) in the style of the Latin peoples: LME.