libra
English
Etymology
From Latin lībra (“pound”), partially via Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese libra. Doublet of lira, livre, libbre, liter, rottol, and arratel.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈliːbrə/, /ˈlaibrə/
Audio (CA) (file)
Noun
libra (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
Coordinate terms
- (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
Czech
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Declension
Galician
Etymology 1
From 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
- IPA(key): [ˈliβɾɐ]
Noun
libra 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
Related terms
References
- “libra” in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval, SLI - ILGA 2006–2022.
- “libra” in Xavier Varela Barreiro & Xavier Gómez Guinovart: Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval. SLI / Grupo TALG / ILG, 2006–2018.
- “libra” in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega, SLI - ILGA 2006–2013.
- “libra” in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega. Santiago: ILG.
- “libra” in Álvarez, Rosario (coord.): Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués, Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega.
Verb
libra
- inflection of librar:
- third-person singular present indicative
- second-person singular imperative
Italian
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈli.bra/
- Rhymes: -ibra
- Hyphenation: lì‧bra
Latin
Etymology 1
Of uncertain origin. The word's original form was something like Proto-Italic *līðra, *leiðra (“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
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈliː.bra/, [ˈlʲiːbrä]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈli.bra/, [ˈliːbrä]
Noun
lībra 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
First-declension noun.
Case | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
Nominative | lībra | lībrae |
Genitive | lībrae | lībrārum |
Dative | lībrae | lībrīs |
Accusative | lībram | lībrās |
Ablative | lībrā | lībrīs |
Vocative | lībra | lībrae |
Coordinate terms
Descendants
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈliː.braː/, [ˈlʲiːbräː]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈli.bra/, [ˈliːbrä]
References
- 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
- “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, 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, 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
Etymology
From 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
- (Brazil) IPA(key): /ˈli.bɾɐ/
- (Southern Brazil) IPA(key): /ˈli.bɾa/
- (Portugal) IPA(key): /ˈli.bɾɐ/ [ˈli.βɾɐ]
Noun
libra 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
Spanish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈlibɾa/ [ˈli.β̞ɾa]
- Rhymes: -ibɾa
- Syllabification: li‧bra
Etymology 1
From 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
libra 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
Related terms
Etymology 2
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Verb
libra
- inflection of librar:
- third-person singular present indicative
- second-person singular imperative
Further reading
- “libra”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014
Tagalog
Pronunciation
- (Standard Tagalog) IPA(key): /ˈlibɾa/ [ˈlib.ɾɐ]
- Rhymes: -ibɾa
- Syllabification: lib‧ra