caveo

Latin

Etymology

From Proto-Italic *kaweō, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kowh₁éyeti,^[1]^[2] a causative from *(s)kewh₁-.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]

Cognate with Ancient Greek κοέω (koéō), Sanskrit कवि (kaví, “wise, poet, seer, sage”), Lithuanian kavoti (“safeguard, tend”), Russian чу́ять (čújatʹ), Old Armenian ցուցանեմ (cʻucʻanem, “I show”), English show.

Pronunciation

(Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈka.we.oː]
(modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈkaː.ve.o]

Verb

caveō (present infinitive cavēre, perfect active cāvī, supine cautum); second conjugation

to take precautions, beware, take care; to guard against, attend to a thing for a person, provide
Synonyms: cūrō, accūrō, servō, videō, cōnsulō, prōcūrō, colō, cōnsultō

Caveat emptor.
Buyer beware.
1. (with accusative) to beware of, keep away from, avoid
  - c. 27 CE – 66 CE, Petronius, Satyricon 29:
    Cave canem.
    Beware of the dog.
(with ablative, with dative, with ab, with cum, with nē, with ut) to guard against, to be on one's guard against, to take care that (not)
1. (imperative) beware not to!, refrain from!, make sure that not, mind that you don't!
  Cave sīs tē videam!
  Make sure I don't see you again!
  - c. 84 BCE – 54 BCE, Catullus, Carmina 50.13–14:
    Nunc audāx cave sīs, precēsque nostrās/ōrāmus, cave dēspuās, ocelle!
    Beware of being haughty now, I beg you, and don't reject my desperate request, my jewel!
(with dative) to look out in the interests of
(law) to make legal provisions (for or against), to order, decree, stipulate
(law) to give surety or guarantees, to secure bail; to pledge, certify
1. (with ab) to procure bail or surety from

Usage notes

The primary sense ("beware") may either govern a noun in the accusative or a subjunctive clause joined with nē, with the meaning "beware not to, make sure that you don't". However, the latter use became idiomatic early on with the particle nē omitted. In either case, the semantically-weakened cavĕ regularly has a short final vowel through iambic shortening. C.f. the parallel positive vidĕ (“see that, make sure to”).

Conjugation

Conjugation of caveō (second conjugation)

indicative		singular				plural
indicative		first	second		third	first	second		third
active	present	caveō	cavēs		cavet	cavēmus	cavētis		cavent
	imperfect	cavēbam	cavēbās		cavēbat	cavēbāmus	cavēbātis		cavēbant
	future	cavēbō	cavēbis		cavēbit	cavēbimus	cavēbitis		cavēbunt
	perfect	cāvī	cāvistī, cāstī¹		cāvit, cāt¹	cāvimus, cāmus¹	cāvistis, cāstis¹		cāvērunt, cārunt, cāvēre¹
	pluperfect	cāveram, cāram¹	cāverās, cārās¹		cāverat, cārat¹	cāverāmus, cārāmus¹	cāverātis, cārātis¹		cāverant, cārant¹
	future perfect	cāverō, cārō¹	cāveris, cāris¹		cāverit, cārit¹	cāverimus, cārimus¹	cāveritis, cāritis¹		cāverint, cārint¹
passive	present	caveor	cavēris, cavēre		cavētur	cavēmur	cavēminī		caventur
	imperfect	cavēbar	cavēbāris, cavēbāre		cavēbātur	cavēbāmur	cavēbāminī		cavēbantur
	future	cavēbor	cavēberis, cavēbere		cavēbitur	cavēbimur	cavēbiminī		cavēbuntur
	perfect	cautus + present active indicative of sum
	pluperfect	cautus + imperfect active indicative of sum
	future perfect	cautus + future active indicative of sum
subjunctive		singular				plural
subjunctive		first	second		third	first	second		third
active	present	caveam	caveās		caveat	caveāmus	caveātis		caveant
	imperfect	cavērem	cavērēs		cavēret	cavērēmus	cavērētis		cavērent
	perfect	cāverim, cārim¹	cāverīs, cārīs¹		cāverit, cārit¹	cāverīmus, cārīmus¹	cāverītis, cārītis¹		cāverint, cārint¹
	pluperfect	cāvissem, cāssem¹	cāvissēs, cāssēs¹		cāvisset, cāsset¹	cāvissēmus, cāssēmus¹	cāvissētis, cāssētis¹		cāvissent, cāssent¹
passive	present	cavear	caveāris, caveāre		caveātur	caveāmur	caveāminī		caveantur
	imperfect	cavērer	cavērēris, cavērēre		cavērētur	cavērēmur	cavērēminī		cavērentur
	perfect	cautus + present active subjunctive of sum
	pluperfect	cautus + imperfect active subjunctive of sum
imperative		singular				plural
imperative		first	second		third	first	second		third
active	present	—	cavē		—	—	cavēte		—
active	future	—	cavētō		cavētō	—	cavētōte		caventō
passive	present	—	cavēre		—	—	cavēminī		—
passive	future	—	cavētor		cavētor	—	—		caventor
non-finite forms		infinitive				participle
non-finite forms		active		passive		active		passive
present		cavēre		cavērī		cavēns		—
future		cautūrum esse		cautum īrī		cautūrus		cavendus
perfect		cāvisse, cāsse¹		cautum esse		—		cautus
future perfect		—		cautum fore		—		—
perfect potential		cautūrum fuisse		—		—		—
verbal nouns		gerund					supine
		genitive	dative		accusative	ablative	accusative		ablative
		cavendī	cavendō		cavendum	cavendō	cautum		cautū

¹At least one rare poetic syncopated perfect form is attested.

Derived terms

Related terms

cautionalis
cautulus
incaute
incautela
incautus
percautus
praecatus
praecautio

Descendants

⇒ Vulgar Latin: *cavicare
- Old French: chuer
  - French: choyer

References

“caveō” on page 315 of the Oxford Latin Dictionary (2nd ed., 2012)
“caveo”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
“caveo”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
“caveo”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book‎^[2], London: Macmillan and Co.
- (ambiguous) to prescribe in one's will: testamento aliquid cavere (Fin. 2. 31)

^ Sihler, Andrew L. (1995), New Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin, Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 44
^ Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 721
^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 101
^ Rix, Helmut, editor (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben [Lexicon of Indo-European Verbs] (in German), 2nd edition, Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, →ISBN, page 561
^ Alexandr Loginov (2025), “What is the relationship between the meanings 'pledge' and 'sacrifice' in the semantics of the root represented in κοῖον, κοιᾶται, etc.?”, in Graeco-Latina Brunensia‎^[1], volume 30, number 1, →ISSN, page 59
^ Pokorny, Julius (1959), Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 587

[1] Sihler, Andrew L. (1995), New Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin, Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 44

[2] Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 721

[3] De Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 101

[4] Rix, Helmut, editor (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben [Lexicon of Indo-European Verbs] (in German), 2nd edition, Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, →ISBN, page 561

[5] Alexandr Loginov (2025), “What is the relationship between the meanings 'pledge' and 'sacrifice' in the semantics of the root represented in κοῖον, κοιᾶται, etc.?”, in Graeco-Latina Brunensia‎^[1], volume 30, number 1, →ISSN, page 59

[6] Pokorny, Julius (1959), Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 587

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