vafer

Latin

Etymology

Possibly related to vabrum, but there is little evidence for this word. vafer could have been borrowed from a neighboring Italic dialect, from earlier *vaber, from Proto-Italic *wasro- (“versatile”), which could be from the root of varius (“varied”), or possibly otherwise from the root of vado (“I go, proceed”).^[1]

Pronunciation

(Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈu̯a.fer/, [ˈu̯äfɛr]
(modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈva.fer/, [ˈväːfer]

Adjective

vafer (feminine vafra, neuter vafrum, adverb vafrē); first/second-declension adjective (nominative masculine singular in -er)

sly, cunning, crafty, artful, subtle
Synonyms: callidus, cōnsultus

Antonyms: ineptus, rudis, iners, incapāx

Declension

First/second-declension adjective (nominative masculine singular in -er).

	masculine	feminine	neuter	masculine	feminine	neuter
	singular			plural
nominative	vafer	vafra	vafrum	vafrī	vafrae	vafra
genitive	vafrī	vafrae	vafrī	vafrōrum	vafrārum	vafrōrum
dative	vafrō	vafrae	vafrō	vafrīs
accusative	vafrum	vafram	vafrum	vafrōs	vafrās	vafra
ablative	vafrō	vafrā	vafrō	vafrīs
vocative	vafer	vafra	vafrum	vafrī	vafrae	vafra

Descendants

→ Italian: vafro (learned)

References

“vafer”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
“vafer”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
vafer in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.

^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008) “vafer”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 650

[1] De Vaan, Michiel (2008) “vafer”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 650

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