supernus

Latin

Etymology

Most likely a back-formation from supernē.

Pronunciation

Adjective

supernus (feminine superna, neuter supernum, adverb superne); first/second-declension adjective

  1. upper, that is located above
    • c. 77 CE – 79 CE, Pliny the Elder, Naturalis Historia 9.12.37:
      Dentēs nōn sunt testūdinī, set rōstrī marginēs acūtī supernā parte, interiōrem claudente pyxidum modō tantā ōris dūritiā ut lapidēs comminuant.
      The turtle has no teeth, but the edges of the beak are sharp on the side above, which closes the lower jaw in the manner of boxes with such hardness that they can crush stones.
  2. celestial, supernal, lofty
  3. (geography, figuratively, rare) northern
    • 5th C. CE, Priscian (translator), Periegesis 29–33, original author: Dionysius Periegetes, in Poetae Latini Minores (volume V), Emil Baehrens (editor), Bibliotheca Teubneriana, Leipzig 1879, page 276:
      Fīnibus est Asiae latus artum lingua supernīs,
      Caspia quam mediam faciunt atque aequora pontī
      Euxīnī: locus hic discrīmen dīcitur esse
      Eurōpae atque Asiae disiungēns rūribus arva.
      The northern limits of Asia Minor have a narrow flank, a tongue,
      which the Caspian Sea and the waters of the Black Sea create
      in the middle: this place is said to be the separation
      of Europe and Asia, distinguising the country from the fields.

Declension

First/second-declension adjective.

Number Singular Plural
Case / Gender Masculine Feminine Neuter Masculine Feminine Neuter
Nominative supernus superna supernum supernī supernae superna
Genitive supernī supernae supernī supernōrum supernārum supernōrum
Dative supernō supernō supernīs
Accusative supernum supernam supernum supernōs supernās superna
Ablative supernō supernā supernō supernīs
Vocative superne superna supernum supernī supernae superna

Derived terms

Descendants
  • English: supernal
  • French: supernel
  • Italian: superno

Noun

supernus m (genitive supernī); second declension

  1. (Medieval Latin) heaven-dweller, God
  2. (military) a sword thrust made over the top of an opponent's shield

Declension

Second-declension noun.

Case Singular Plural
Nominative supernus supernī
Genitive supernī supernōrum
Dative supernō supernīs
Accusative supernum supernōs
Ablative supernō supernīs
Vocative superne supernī

References
  • “supernus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  • “supernus”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
  • supernus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
  • “supernus” on page 2069/3 of the Oxford Latin Dictionary (2nd ed., 2012)
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