Learned borrowing fromLatinfortis(“strong”).Doublet offort andforte.
fortis (notcomparable)
- (phonetics, of a consonant) Strongly articulated, hencevoiceless.
- Synonym:tense
- Antonym:lenis
2004, Stephan Gramley, Michael Pätzold,A Survey of Modern English, Routledge,→ISBN, page80:All vowels, whether short or complex, are relatively shorter when followed by afortis consonant and relatively longer when followed by a lenis one or, for those where this is possible, when no consonant follows (in free or unchecked syllables).
fortis (pluralfortes)
- (phonetics) A fortis consonant.
FromOld Latinforctis, fromProto-Italic*forktis, fromProto-Indo-European*bʰerǵʰ-(“to rise, high, hill”) (>Proto-Indo-European*bʰérǵʰ-ti-s) orProto-Indo-European*dʰerǵʰ-(“to bind fast, to be firm, strong”); in the latter case, an earlier Proto-Italic form of the word*θorktis can be reconstructed.[1]
fortis (neuterforte,comparativefortior,superlativefortissimus,adverbfortiter);third-declension two-termination adjective
- (physically)strong,powerful
- Synonyms:praevalēns,potis,potēns,validus,strēnuus,ingēns,firmus,compos
- Antonyms:dēbilis,languidus,aeger,fractus,īnfirmus,tenuis,obnoxius,inops
Adeōfortis erat ut arborēs pugnō excīderet.- He was sostrong that he could cut down trees with his fist.
- (figuratively)firm,resolute,steadfast,stout
- Synonyms:fīxus,tenāx,inexōrābilis,obstinātus
- (figuratively)courageous,brave
- Antonym:imbēcillus
8CE,
Ovid,
Fasti1.493–494:
- omne solumfortī patria est, ut piscibus aequor,
ut volucrī, vacuō quicquid in orbe patet.- Every land is hometo the brave, as to fishes the sea,
as to birds for every void whatsoever in the open world.
- (figuratively)manly,mannish(corresponding to the Greekἀνδρεῖος)
Third-declension two-termination adjective.
See the etymology of the correspondinglemma form.
fortis
- genitivesingular offors
- ^De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “fortis”, inEtymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill,→ISBN,pages236-7
- “fortis”, inCharlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879),A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “fortis”, inCharlton T. Lewis (1891),An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- "fortis", in Charles du Fresne du Cange’sGlossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
- “fortis”, inGaffiot, Félix (1934),Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
- Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894),Latin Phrase-Book[1], London:Macmillan and Co.
- be brave:fortem te praebe
- (ambiguous) quite accidentally, fortuitously:temere et fortuito; forte (et) temere
- (ambiguous) to be brave by nature:animo forti esse
- (ambiguous) personally brave:manu fortis
