Verbum Hodiernum: PHILOSOPHUS

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PHILOSOPHUS Dictionary Entry

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Today's word is PHILOSOPHUS, a Greek word meaning "lover of wisdom," adopted into Latin. We have also adopted the Greek word (via Latin) into English as "philosopher." There is also a noun philosophia, meaning "philosophy."

All the vowels in Latin philosophus are short, and the "ph" represents a single consonant in the Greek alphabet (the letter phi, φ), so the stress in the Latin word is on the antepenultimate syllabus, philósophus.

In addition to the familiar word "philosopher," you can see the Latin word philosophia itself in the abbreviation PhD, Philosophiae Doctor. Plus, here is a bit of related Greek trivia: The honor society Phi Beta Kappa is a Greek abbreviation of Φιλοσοφία Βίου Κυβερνήτης (philosophia biou kybernetes), "philosophy, guide of life."

Here are some examples of today's word in Latin sayings and proverbs:

Barba tenus philosophus.

Barba non facit philosophum.

Video barbam et pallium; philosophum nondum video.

Barba non facit philosophum, neque vile gerere pallium.

Si philosophum oporteat ex barba metiri, hircos primam laudem ablaturos.

Sile et philosophus esto.

Si tacuisset, philosophus mansisset.

Verus philosophus est amator Dei.

Tota philosophorum vita commentatio mortis est.

Philosophi autem in suis lectulis plerumque moriuntur.

Liberis enim verbis loquuntur philosophi.

Inanes sententiae philosophorum.

Nihil tam absurde dici potest quod non dicatur ab aliquo philosophorum.

Plus potest negare asinus quam probare philosophus.

Facilius inter philosophos quam inter horologia conveniet.


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