nutrix

Latin

Alternative forms

  • noutrix (archaic inscription, CIL 1.45)

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Italic *(s)noutrī, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)neu-tr-ih₂-.[1] Can potentially be reanalyzed as nūtriō, nūtrītum (to suckle, verb) +‎ -trīx f (-ess, agentive suffix), with haplology of -trītrī- to -trī-.

Pronunciation

Noun

nūtrīx f (genitive nūtrīcis); third declension

  1. a child's nurse; wet nurse; milk mother
  2. (transferred sense) (anything that provides nutriment and support)
  3. (figuratively) (that which rears, originates, promotes or fosters)

Declension

Third-declension noun.

singular plural
nominative nūtrīx nūtrīcēs
genitive nūtrīcis nūtrīcum
dative nūtrīcī nūtrīcibus
accusative nūtrīcem nūtrīcēs
ablative nūtrīce nūtrīcibus
vocative nūtrīx nūtrīcēs

Derived terms

Descendants

  • Italian: nodrice, nudrice, notrice (archaic), nutrice (latinized)
  • Old Spanish: nodriz, nutriz (latinized)

References

  1. ^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “nūtrīx”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 420

Further reading