dactylus

English

Noun

dactylus (plural dactyli)

1. Synonym of dactyl (“type of metrical foot”)

Dutch

Alternative forms

• daktylus (superseded)

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin dactylus, from Ancient Greek δάκτυλος (dáktulos).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈdɑk.ti.lʏs/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: dac‧ty‧lus

Noun

dactylus m (plural dactyli or dactylen)

1. (poetry) dactyl

Derived terms

• dactylisch

Latin

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek δάκτυλος (dáktulos, “a finger, a dactyl”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈdak.ty.lus/, [ˈd̪äkt̪ʏɫ̪ʊs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈdak.ti.lus/, [ˈd̪äkt̪ilus]

Noun

dactylus m (genitive dactylī); second declension

1. a sort of muscle
2. a kind of grape
3. a sort of grass
4. a precious stone
5. the date
6. (poetry) a dactyl (¯ ˘ ˘), one long followed by two short, or one accented followed by two unaccented; this came to be in an allusion to the three joints of the finger

Declension

Second-declension noun.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	dactylus	dactylī
Genitive	dactylī	dactylōrum
Dative	dactylō	dactylīs
Accusative	dactylum	dactylōs
Ablative	dactylō	dactylīs
Vocative	dactyle	dactylī

Synonyms

• (kind of grape): dactylis

Descendants

Descendants

• → Basque: datil
• Catalan: dàtil
• → Czech: datle
• → Danish: daddel
• → Dutch: dadel
• → English: date, dactyl
• → Finnish: taateli, daktyyli
• French: datte, → dactyle
• → German: Dattel
• → Hungarian: datolya
• → Icelandic: daðla
• → Irish: dáta
• Italian: dattero, dattilo
• → Latvian: datele
• → Norwegian: daddel
• → Polish: daktyl
• Romansch: datla
• → Scottish Gaelic: deit
• → Slovene: datelj
• Spanish: dátil, → dáctilo
• → Swedish: dadel
• → Translingual: Dactylis

Adjective

dactylus (feminine dactyla, neuter dactylum); first/second-declension adjective

1. (New Latin) finger-like; fingered.

Declension

First/second-declension adjective.

Number	Singular				Plural
Case / Gender	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	dactylus	dactyla	dactylum		dactylī	dactylae	dactyla
Genitive	dactylī	dactylae	dactylī		dactylōrum	dactylārum	dactylōrum
Dative	dactylō		dactylō		dactylīs
Accusative	dactylum	dactylam	dactylum		dactylōs	dactylās	dactyla
Ablative	dactylō	dactylā	dactylō		dactylīs
Vocative	dactyle	dactyla	dactylum		dactylī	dactylae	dactyla

Descendants

• Translingual: Grapholita dactyla, Lepanthes dactyla, Porroglossum dactylum

References

• “dactylus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “dactylus”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• dactylus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• “dactylus”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “dactylus”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin