lacuna
English edit
Etymology edit
Learned borrowing from Latin lacūna (“a ditch, pit; a hollow, cavity; a gap, defect”). Doublet of lacune and lagoon.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
lacuna (plural lacunae or (obsolete) lacunæ or lacunas)
- (particularly anatomy) A small opening; a small pit or depression, especially in bone.
- Coordinate term: fovea
- (microscopy) A space visible between cells, allowing free passage of light.
- A small blank space; a gap or vacancy; a hiatus.
- 1912, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Lost World […], London, New York, N.Y.: Hodder and Stoughton, →OCLC:
- "Our young friend makes up for many obvious mental lacunæ by some measure of primitive common sense," remarked Challenger.
- An absent part, especially in a book or other piece of writing, often referring to an ancient manuscript or similar.
- Long lacunae in this inscription make interpretation difficult.
- (figurative) Any gap, break, hole, or lack in a set of things; something missing.
- 2019, Li Huang, James Lambert, “Another Arrow for the Quiver: A New Methodology for Multilingual Researchers”, in Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, volume 41, number 7, , page 577:
- If the researcher cannot adequately hear a specific conversation due to its low volume or other acoustic interference, then this data point can be passed over with the understanding that such lacunae will be randomly distributed over the data collecting period.
- (linguistics, translation studies) A language gap, which occurs when there is no direct translation in the target language for a lexical term found in the source language.
- Synonym: anisomorphism
- Hyponyms: accidental gap, lexical gap
Synonyms edit
Derived terms edit
Translations edit
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Further reading edit
- “lacuna”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
- “lacuna”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
Anagrams edit
Italian edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from Latin lacūna. Compare the inherited doublet laguna.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
lacuna f (plural lacune)
Derived terms edit
Further reading edit
- lacuna in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana
Anagrams edit
Latin edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
According to Alfred Ernout and Antoine Meillet, [1] from the feminine substantivation of an unattested adjectival form *lacūnus (pertaining to a lake, cistern), itself from lacus (“a lake, pond; a basin, tank, cistern”) + -nus (see -īnus). For the u-stem-appended -nus adjectival suffix compare opportūnus and importūnus, from portus. For its substantivation, probably from the clipping of the set-phrase "lacuna aqua" (cistern water), compare urīna with the same development.
Pronunciation edit
- (Classical) IPA(key): /laˈkuː.na/, [ɫ̪äˈkuːnä]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /laˈku.na/, [läˈkuːnä]
Noun edit
lacūna f (genitive lacūnae); first declension
- (literal, chiefly poetic) a hole, pit, ditch; (especially) a pool, pond
- (figurative, rare, Classical Latin) a gap, void, defect, want, loss
- c. 177 CE, Aulus Gellius, Noctes Atticae 1.3.23:
- […], minimaque illa labes et quasi lacuna famae munimentis partarum amico utilitatium solidatur.
- […] and this unimportant fault, a simple defect of good reputation is repaid (made firm again) by the excuse of new-found circumstances to help a friend.
- […], minimaque illa labes et quasi lacuna famae munimentis partarum amico utilitatium solidatur.
Inflection edit
First-declension noun.
Case | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
Nominative | lacūna | lacūnae |
Genitive | lacūnae | lacūnārum |
Dative | lacūnae | lacūnīs |
Accusative | lacūnam | lacūnās |
Ablative | lacūnā | lacūnīs |
Vocative | lacūna | lacūnae |
Synonyms edit
Derived terms edit
Related terms edit
Descendants edit
References edit
- ^ Ernout, Alfred, Meillet, Antoine (1985) “lacus”, in Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue latine: histoire des mots[1] (in French), 4th edition, with additions and corrections of Jacques André, Paris: Klincksieck, published 2001, page 337
- “lacuna”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “lacuna”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- lacuna 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)
- lacuna in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
- “lacuna”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
- lacuna in Ramminger, Johann (2016 July 16 (last accessed)) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700[3], pre-publication website, 2005-2016
Portuguese edit
Etymology edit
Learned borrowing from Latin lacūna.[1][2] Compare the inherited lagoa and laguna.
Pronunciation edit
- Hyphenation: la‧cu‧na
Noun edit
lacuna f (plural lacunas)
Related terms edit
References edit
- ^ “lacuna” in Dicionário infopédia da Língua Portuguesa. Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2024.
- ^ “lacuna” in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa.
Romanian edit
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
lacuna f