praepes

Latin

Etymology

From prae- (“in front of; highly”) +‎ pet- (“make for, move towards”) +‎ -s (suffix marking the nominative singular of third-declension nouns and adjectives).^[1]

Pronunciation

(Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈprae̯.pes/, [ˈpräe̯pɛs̠]
(modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈpre.pes/, [ˈprɛːpes]

Adjective

praepes (genitive praepetis); third-declension one-termination adjective (non-i-stem)

swift (of flight), rapid
- c. 45 CE – 96 CE, Statius, Thebaid 6.298:^[2]
  dic inclyta, Phoebe, regentum
  nomina, dic ipsos ; neque enim generosior umquam
  alipedum conlata acies, ceu praepete cursu
  confligant densae volucres aut litore in uno
  Aeolus insanis statuat certamina ventis.
  Tell, O Phoebus, the drivers' famous names, tell of the steeds themselves ; for never did nobler array of wing-footed coursers meet in conflict : even as serried ranks of birds compete in swift course or on a single shore Aeolus appoints a contest for the wild winds.
- c. 54 CE, Seneca the Younger, Phaedra 1061:^[3]
  ut cepit animos seque praetemptans satis
  prolusit irae, praepeti cursu evolat,
  summam citato vix gradu tangens humum,
  et torva currus ante trepidantis stetit.
  When he has gained his spirit, and with full trial rehearsed his wrath, he darts forth, running swiftly, scarce touching the surface of the ground with flying feet, and stands, in grim menace, before the trembling steeds.
- Decimus Magnus Ausonius, Ephemeris 7:^[4]
  Puer, notarum praepetum
  sollers minister, advola.
  Hi boy! My secretary, skilled in dashing shorthand, make haste and come!
winged
prosperous, fortunate, lucky
Synonym: fēlīx
- 239 BCE – 169 BCE, Ennius, Annales 1.89:
  Simul aureus exoritur sol / edunt de caelo ter quattuor corpora sancta / avium, praepetibus sese pulcrisque locis dant.
  2018 translation by Sander M. Goldberg, Gesine Manuwald
  Just as the golden sun arises, there comes descending from the sky a dozen blessed bodies of birds, settling themselves on fine and favorable seats.

Declension

Third-declension one-termination adjective (non-i-stem).

	masc./fem.	neuter	masc./fem.	neuter
	singular		plural
nominative	praepes		praepetēs	—
genitive	praepetis		praepetum
dative	praepetī		praepetibus
accusative	praepetem	praepes	praepetēs	—
ablative	praepete praepetī		praepetibus
vocative	praepes		praepetēs	—

Displays a mix of consonant-stem and i-stem forms. The ablative singular can end in -ī or -e. The consonant-stem genitive singular praepetum is found in Gellius and Servius (although in the case of the latter praepetium is a variant manuscript reading^[5]). The neuter plural nominative/accusative/vocative form is not attested at all in Classical Latin. (The i-stem form praepetia can be found in some New Latin texts.)

References

^ Francis, E. D. (2009) [1973] “Particularum quarundam varietas: 'Prae' and 'pro'”, in Studies in Latin Language and Literature, Cambridge University Press, page 24
^ Statius with an English translation by J. H. Mozley, vol. II of two volumes, 1928, p. 82f.
^ Seneca's Tragedies with an English translation by Frank Justus Miller, vol. I of two, 1917, p. 404f.
^ Ausonius with an English translation by Hugh G. Evelyn White, vol. I of two, 1919, p. 24f.
^ Kaster, Robert A. (2018) Charles E. Murgia, editor, Serviani in Vergili Aeneidos libros IX-XII commentarii, Oxford University Press, page 512