libra
English
editEtymology
editFrom Latin lībra (“pound”), partially via Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese libra. Doublet of lira, livre, libbre, liter, rottol, and arratel.
Pronunciation
editNoun
editlibra (plural libras or librae) (Roman contexts)
- (historical) A Roman unit of mass, usually equivalent to 327 g.
- (historical) A traditional Spanish unit of mass, usually around 460 g.
- (historical) A traditional Portuguese unit of mass, usually equivalent to 345 g and particularly used for trade in medicines.
- (historical) Synonym of arratel, a separate Portuguese unit of mass, usually around 460 g.
- (historical) Alternative spelling of libbra, a traditional Italian unit of mass.
- (historical) Synonym of pound, a notional pound of silver as a money of account, especially in medieval contexts.
Synonyms
edit- (Roman unit of mass): Roman pound, pound (Roman contexts)
- (Spanish unit of mass): Spanish pound, pound (Spanish contexts)
- (Portuguese unit of mass): Portuguese pound, pound (Portuguese contexts, but more often used for the arratel)
Coordinate terms
edit- (Roman unit of mass): uncia (1⁄12 libra)
- (Spanish unit of mass): onza (1⁄16 libra), cuarteron (1⁄4 libra), marco (1⁄1 libra), arroba (25 libras), quintal (100 libras), tonelada (2,000 libras)
- (Portuguese unit of mass): oitava (usually 1⁄72 libra), onça (usually 1⁄12 libra), quarta (usually 1⁄3 libra), marco (usually 2⁄3 libra), arratel (usually 1 1⁄3 libras)
References
editAnagrams
editCzech
editPronunciation
editAudio: (file)
Noun
editlibra f
Declension
editFurther reading
editGalician
editEtymology 1
editFrom Old Galician-Portuguese livra, attested in the 13th-century Cantigas de Santa Maria, from Latin libra (“Roman pound”). Doublet of lira. In reference to the English unit, a calque of English pound. Cognate with Portuguese and Spanish libra and Catalan lliura.
Pronunciation
editNoun
editlibra f (plural libras)
- English or American pound, a unit of mass equivalent to 453.6 g
- (historical) Galician pound, a unit of mass equivalent to about 575 g
- (historical) libra, Spanish pound, a unit of mass equivalent to about 460 g
- British pound, a unit of British currency originally notionally equal to a pound of sterling silver
- Synonym: libra esterlina
- (chiefly historical) pound, other similar currencies originally notionally equal to a pound of gold or silver
Coordinate terms
editNoun
editlibra m or f by sense (plural libras)
- Libra (someone with the Libra star sign)
Related terms
editReferences
edit- Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “libra”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
- Xavier Varela Barreiro, Xavier Gómez Guinovart (2006–2018) “libra”, in Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: ILG
- Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, editor (2006–2013), “libra”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
- Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “libra”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
- Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “libra”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN
Etymology 2
editVerb
editlibra
- inflection of librar:
Italian
editPronunciation
editNoun
editlibra f (plural libre)
Latin
editEtymology 1
editOf uncertain origin. The word's original form was something like Proto-Italic *līðrā, *leiðrā (“pound”), surviving also in Ancient Greek λίτρα (lítra), whence English liter.[1]
Weiss derives the term from Proto-Indo-European *leyH- (“to pour”) suffixed with the instrumental/resultative suffix *-dʰrom, under the assumption that the term originally meant "pouring (of metal)" before evolving to mean a unit of weight.[2] In this case, then cognate with Proto-Slavic *lìti (“to pour”), Proto-Celtic *liyeti (“to flow”), Ancient Greek λείβω (leíbō, “to pour”), Lithuanian líeti (“to let flow”).
Pronunciation
edit- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): /ˈliː.bra/, [ˈlʲiːbrä]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈli.bra/, [ˈliːbrä]
Noun
editlībra f (genitive lībrae); first declension
- (historical) libra, Roman pound, a Roman unit of mass, equivalent to about 327 g
- scales, a tool used to balance two weights to measure amounts
- level, a tool used to check surfaces for horizontal and vertical alignment
- (Medieval Latin, New Latin) pound, any of various units of mass derived from or roughly equivalent to the Roman libra
- (Medieval Latin, New Latin) pound, any of various currencies derived from the use of pound as a weight in silver
Declension
editFirst-declension noun.
singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | lībra | lībrae |
genitive | lībrae | lībrārum |
dative | lībrae | lībrīs |
accusative | lībram | lībrās |
ablative | lībrā | lībrīs |
vocative | lībra | lībrae |
Synonyms
editCoordinate terms
editRelated terms
editDescendants
editEtymology 2
editPronunciation
edit- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): /ˈliː.braː/, [ˈlʲiːbräː]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈli.bra/, [ˈliːbrä]
Verb
editlībrā
References
edit- ^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008) “lībra”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 339
- ^ Michael Weiss, "The Etymology of Latin lībra", conference paper presented at the SCS Greek and Latin Linguistics Panel on January 5, 2021
Further reading
edit- “libra”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “libra”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- libra 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)
- libra in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
- Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
- (ambiguous) to make extracts from Cicero's writings: aliquid, multa ex Ciceronis libris excerpere (not excerpere librum)
- (ambiguous) to make extracts from Cicero's writings: aliquid, multa ex Ciceronis libris excerpere (not excerpere librum)
- “libra”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
- libra in Ramminger, Johann (2016 July 16 (last accessed)) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700[2], pre-publication website, 2005-2016
- “libra”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin
Portuguese
editEtymology
editFrom Latin libra (“Roman pound”). Doublet of arrátel. In reference to the English unit, a calque of English pound. Cognate with Galician and Spanish libra and Catalan lliura.
Pronunciation
edit
Noun
editlibra f (plural libras)
- English or American pound, a unit of mass equal to 454 g
- pound, British and other currencies derived from the use of a pound as a weight in silver
- (historical) libra, Portuguese pound, a traditional unit of mass usually equivalent to 345 g and chiefly used for trade in medicines
- (historical) Synonym of arrátel, Portuguese pound, a traditional unit of mass usually equivalent to 460 g
Coordinate terms
editSpanish
editPronunciation
editEtymology 1
editFrom Latin libra (“Roman pound, scale”). Doublet of lira. In reference to the English unit, a calque of English pound. Cognate with Galician and Portuguese libra and Catalan lliura.
Noun
editlibra f (plural libras)
- English or American pound avoirdupois (a unit of mass equivalent to 453.6 g)
- (historical) libra, Spanish pound (a traditional unit of mass equivalent to about 460 g)
- British pound (the currency of the United Kingdom and its dependencies, originally notionally equivalent to a pound of stirling silver)
- Synonym: libra esterlina
- (chiefly historical) pound (various other currencies originally notionally equivalent to a pound of gold or silver)
Coordinate terms
edit- (English unit of mass): grano (1⁄7000 libra), onza (1⁄16 libra), tonelada (2,000 or 2,240 libras)
- (Spanish unit of mass): grano (1⁄9216 libra), onza (1⁄16 libra), cuarterón (1⁄4 libra), marco (1⁄2 libra), arroba (25 libras), quintal (100 libras), tonelada (2,000 libras)
Noun
editlibra m or f by sense (plural libras)
- Libra (someone with the Libra star sign)
Related terms
editEtymology 2
editSee the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Verb
editlibra
- inflection of librar:
Further reading
edit- “libra”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.7, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2023 November 28
Tagalog
editEtymology
editBorrowed from Spanish libra, from Latin libra.
Pronunciation
edit- (Standard Tagalog) IPA(key): /ˈlibɾa/ [ˈlib.ɾɐ]
- Rhymes: -ibɾa
- Syllabification: lib‧ra
Noun
editlibra (Baybayin spelling ᜎᜒᜊ᜔ᜇ)
- pound (unit of mass or force/weight)
Related terms
editAnagrams
edit- English terms borrowed from Latin
- English terms derived from Latin
- English terms derived from Italian
- English terms derived from Spanish
- English terms derived from Portuguese
- English doublets
- English 2-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio pronunciation
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- English nouns with irregular plurals
- English terms with historical senses
- en:Ancient Rome
- en:Spain
- en:Portugal
- en:Brazil
- en:Units of measure
- en:Currencies
- Czech terms with audio pronunciation
- Czech lemmas
- Czech nouns
- Czech feminine nouns
- Czech hard feminine nouns
- Czech nouns with reducible stem
- cs:Currency
- cs:Units of measure
- Galician terms inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese
- Galician terms derived from Old Galician-Portuguese
- Galician terms inherited from Latin
- Galician terms derived from Latin
- Galician doublets
- Galician terms derived from English
- Galician terms with IPA pronunciation
- Galician lemmas
- Galician nouns
- Galician countable nouns
- Galician feminine nouns
- Galician terms with historical senses
- Galician nouns with irregular gender
- Galician masculine nouns
- Galician nouns with multiple genders
- Galician masculine and feminine nouns by sense
- Galician non-lemma forms
- Galician verb forms
- gl:Currency
- gl:Units of measure
- gl:United States
- gl:United Kingdom
- gl:England
- Galician terms calqued from English
- Italian 2-syllable words
- Italian terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:Italian/ibra
- Rhymes:Italian/ibra/2 syllables
- Italian lemmas
- Italian nouns
- Italian countable nouns
- Italian feminine nouns
- Latin terms with unknown etymologies
- Latin terms inherited from Proto-Italic
- Latin terms derived from Proto-Italic
- Latin terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
- Latin 2-syllable words
- Latin terms with IPA pronunciation
- Latin lemmas
- Latin nouns
- Latin first declension nouns
- Latin feminine nouns in the first declension
- Latin feminine nouns
- Latin terms with historical senses
- Medieval Latin
- New Latin
- Latin non-lemma forms
- Latin verb forms
- Latin words in Meissner and Auden's phrasebook
- la:Units of measure
- la:Currency
- la:Currencies
- la:Tools
- la:Carpentry
- la:United States
- la:United Kingdom
- la:England
- Portuguese terms inherited from Latin
- Portuguese terms derived from Latin
- Portuguese doublets
- Portuguese terms derived from English
- Portuguese 2-syllable words
- Portuguese terms with IPA pronunciation
- Portuguese lemmas
- Portuguese nouns
- Portuguese countable nouns
- Portuguese feminine nouns
- Portuguese terms with historical senses
- pt:Units of measure
- pt:Currency
- pt:United States
- pt:United Kingdom
- pt:England
- Portuguese terms calqued from English
- Spanish 2-syllable words
- Spanish terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:Spanish/ibɾa
- Rhymes:Spanish/ibɾa/2 syllables
- Spanish terms derived from Latin
- Spanish doublets
- Spanish terms derived from English
- Spanish lemmas
- Spanish nouns
- Spanish countable nouns
- Spanish feminine nouns
- Spanish terms with historical senses
- Spanish nouns with irregular gender
- Spanish masculine nouns
- Spanish nouns with multiple genders
- Spanish masculine and feminine nouns by sense
- Spanish non-lemma forms
- Spanish verb forms
- es:Currency
- es:Units of measure
- es:United States
- es:United Kingdom
- es:England
- Spanish terms calqued from English
- Tagalog terms borrowed from Spanish
- Tagalog terms derived from Spanish
- Tagalog terms derived from Latin
- Tagalog 2-syllable words
- Tagalog terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:Tagalog/ibɾa
- Rhymes:Tagalog/ibɾa/2 syllables
- Tagalog terms with malumay pronunciation
- Tagalog lemmas
- Tagalog nouns
- Tagalog terms with Baybayin script