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reliquiae. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
reliquiae, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
reliquiae in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
reliquiae you have here. The definition of the word
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English
Etymology
From Latin reliquiae.
Noun
reliquiae pl (plural only)
- Remains, especially of fossil organisms.
1831, Philosophical Magazine, volume 9, page 435:The most abundant fossil remains of plants belong to terrestrial tribes; but the animal reliquiæ are mostly of aquatic origin; […]
- (archaeology) Artifacts; things made or modified by human art.
Latin
Etymology
From relinquō.
Pronunciation
Noun
rē̆liquiae f pl (genitive rē̆liquiārum); first declension
- remains, relics
- remnants, remainders
29 BCE – 19 BCE,
Virgil,
Aeneid 1.30:
- Trōās, rēliquiās Danaum atque immītis Achillī
- the Trojans, remnants of the Greeks and especially the merciless Achilles
(That is, Achilles and the Greek warriors slaughtered the Trojans except Aeneas and a small remainder who escaped; in the context of Juno’s persistent disdain for the Trojans, the more derogatory “remnants” is more appropriate than “survivors.” See: Juno (mythology), Achilles; Danai.)
- leftovers of a meal
- survivors
- genitive singular of reliquia
- vocative plural of reliquia
Usage notes
Almost always plural; the genitive singular reliquiae is attested.
In the poets, spelled also relliqu-
Declension
First-declension noun, plural only.
Related terms
Descendants
References
- “reliquiae”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “reliquiae”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- reliquiae 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)
- reliquiae in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.