LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
verbthird conjugation

accendō

accendō (present infinitive accendere, perfect active accendī, supine accēnsum)
Classical[akˈkɛn.doː]Ecclesiastical[atˈt͡ʃɛn.do]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. to kindle or light (a fire)
  2. to inflame or arouse

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

ignem faciō; nocte lucernam accendimus.
accendō -ere -cendī — in Mille Verba, Domus et Familia

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Accendere · Incendere · Inflammare · Comburere · Cremare

Accendere, incendere, and inflammare, mean ‘to set on fire:’ accendere, from without, and at a single point, like ἀνάπτειν [hence to light a torch, etc.]; incendere, from within, like ἐνδαίειν [hence to set fire to houses, villages]; inflammare, ‘to set on fire,’ either from without or from within, but with bright flames, like ἀναφλογίζειν; comburere and cremare mean ‘to burn up, or consume by fire;’ comburere, with a glowing heat, as the causative of ardere, like κατακαίειν; cremare, with bright flames, as the causative of flagrare like πιμπράναι. Hence, mortui cremantur on a bright blazing funeral pile; vivi comburuntur, Cic. Fam. x. 32. Verr. i. 33 and 38, in order to make the torture of that mode of dying felt the more. (iv. 250.)

Conjugation conjugation 3

active indicative
formpresentimperfectfutureperfectpluperfectfut. perfect
1st sg.accendōaccendēbamaccendamaccendīaccenderamaccenderō
2nd sg.accendisaccendēbāsaccendēsaccendistīaccenderāsaccenderis
3rd sg.accenditaccendēbataccendetaccenditaccenderataccenderit
1st pl.accendimusaccendēbāmusaccendēmusaccendimusaccenderāmusaccenderimus
2nd pl.accenditisaccendēbātisaccendētisaccendistisaccenderātisaccenderitis
3rd pl.accenduntaccendēbantaccendentaccendērunt
accendēre		accenderantaccenderint
active subjunctive
active subjunctive
formpresentimperfectperfectpluperfect
1st sg.accendamaccenderemaccenderimaccendissem
2nd sg.accendāsaccenderēsaccenderīsaccendissēs
3rd sg.accendataccenderetaccenderitaccendisset
1st pl.accendāmusaccenderēmusaccenderīmusaccendissēmus
2nd pl.accendātisaccenderētisaccenderītisaccendissētis
3rd pl.accendantaccenderentaccenderintaccendissent
passive indicative
passive indicative
formpresentimperfectfuture
1st sg.accendoraccendēbaraccendar
2nd sg.accenderis
accendere		accendēbāris
accendēbāre		accendēris
accendēre
3rd sg.accendituraccendēbāturaccendētur
1st pl.accendimuraccendēbāmuraccendēmur
2nd pl.accendiminīaccendēbāminīaccendēminī
3rd pl.accendunturaccendēbanturaccendentur
passive subjunctive
passive subjunctive
formpresentimperfect
1st sg.accendaraccenderer
2nd sg.accendāris
accendāre		accenderēris
accenderēre
3rd sg.accendāturaccenderētur
1st pl.accendāmuraccenderēmur
2nd pl.accendāminīaccenderēminī
3rd pl.accendanturaccenderentur
imperative
imperative
formactivepassive
pres. 2nd sg.accendeaccendere
pres. 2nd pl.accenditeaccendiminī
fut. 2nd sg.accenditōaccenditor
fut. 3rd sg.accenditōaccenditor
fut. 2nd pl.accenditōte—
fut. 3rd pl.accenduntōaccenduntor
infinitives & participles
infinitives & participles
formactivepassive
present infinitiveaccendereaccendī
perfect infinitiveaccendisseaccēnsum esse
future infinitiveaccēnsūrum esseaccēnsum īrī
present participleaccendēns—
perfect participle—accēnsus
accēnsa, accēnsā, accēnsae, accēnsam, accēnsārum, accēnsās, accēnse, accēnsī, accēnsīs, accēnsō, accēnsōrum, accēnsōs
future participleaccēnsūrus
accēnsūra, accēnsūrā, accēnsūrae, accēnsūram, accēnsūrārum, accēnsūrās, accēnsūre, accēnsūrī, accēnsūrīs, accēnsūrō, accēnsūrōrum, accēnsūrōs, accēnsūrum		accendendus
accendundus, accendenda, accendendā, accendendae, accendendam, accendendārum, accendendās, accendende, accendendīs, accendendōrum, accendendōs
gerundaccendendī, accendendō, accendendumsupineaccēnsum, accēnsū

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

ignem facere, accendere
to light, make a fire.
animos militum accendere
to fire with courage.
accendere, incendere aedificia
to set buildings on fire.
cupiditatem alicuius accendere
to rouse a person's interest, cupidity.
odio inflammatum, accensum esse
to be fired with a passionate hatred.
cupiditate alicuius rei accensum, inflammatum esse
to be fired with desire of a thing.

accendo, ōnis, m. 2. accendo,
I. an inciter, instigator; read by Salmasius in Tert. de Pall. 6, where the old reading cerdo is to be preferred.
ac-cendo, ndi, nsum, 3, v. a. cf. candeo, prop.
I. to kindle any thing above, so that it may burn downwards (on the contr., succendere, to kindle underneath, so that it may burn upwards; and incendere, to set fire to on every side) (class., esp. in the trop. signif., very freq.).
I. Lit., to set on fire, to kindle, light: ut Pergama accensa est, Liv. Andr. ap. Non. 512, 31 (Rib. Trag. Rel. p. 1): faces accensae, Cic. Pis. 5: lumen de suo lumine, to kindle, Enn. ap. Cic. Off. 1, 16, 51 (Trag. v. 388 ed. Vahl.); cf.: ita res accendent lumina rebus, Lucr. 1 fin.; and: Deus solem quasi lumen accendit, Cic. Univ. 9, 28; so, ignem, Verg. A. 5, 4 al.
B. Meton., to light up, to illuminate: luna radiis solis accensa, Cic. Rep. 6, 17 (cf. id. N. D. 1, 31, 87); so of the lustre of gold: et gemmis galeam clypeumque accenderat auro, Sil. 15, 681 (but in Cic. Arch. 6, 14, the correct read. is accederet, v. Halm a. h. l.).
II. Fig., to inflame a person or thing (by any thing), to set on fire, to kindle, to incite, rouse up; aliquem or aliquid aliqua re: placare hostem ferocem inimiciterque accensum, Att. ap. Non. 514, 22: quos meritā accendit Mezentius irā, Verg. A. 8, 50: nunc prece nunc dictis virtutem accendit amaris, id. ib. 10, 368 (7, 482, bello animos accendit, is more properly dat.). That to which one is excited is denoted by ad: ad dominationem accensi sunt, Sall. Jug. 31, 16; the person against whom one is excited, by in or contra: in maritum accendebat, Tac. A. 1, 53: quae res Marium contra Metellum vehementer accenderat, Sall. J. 64, 4; with quare c. subj.: accendis quare cupiam magis illi proximus esse, Hor. S. 1, 9, 53. The historians use this word very often, esp. with abstract substt.: certamen, Liv. 35, 10: discordiam, id. 2, 29: spem, Tac. Ann. 12, 34 (cf. Verg. A. 5, 183): dolorem, id. ib. 15, 1 al. In Cic. de Or. 1, 25, 114, praeclare enim se res habeat, si haec accendi aut commoveri arte possint, accendi is obviously the first enkindling, rousing, of talent (syn. with commoveri); cf. id. de Or. 2, 47; id. Phil. 3, 7. And so perhaps Sen. Ben. 7, 9: crystallina ... quorum accendit fragilitas pretium, signifies vessels of crystal, whose fragility gives them value (in the eyes of luxurious men).

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₂éd
  2. Proto-Italic*ad
  3. Proto-Italic*ad-
  4. Latinaccendō

Proto-Indo-European *(s)kend-der. Proto-Italic *kandēō Latin candeō Latin accendō From ad- (“to, toward”) + candeō (“to be brilliant, glittering or illuminated; to shine, glitter, glisten; gleam white; to glow (with heat), to be glowing hot, to be hot”).

Ibero-Romance
  • Portugueseacenderfrom Old Galician-Portuguese acender
  • Spanishacender
  • Galicianacenderfrom Old Galician-Portuguese acender
Insular Romance
  • Sardinianacchendere
Italo-Romance
  • Italianaccendere
  • Sicilianaccenniri
Borrowings
  • Englishaccendfrom Middle English accenden
  • Idoacendar

In English words that came into English from accendō

  • accensoraccēnsor
  • accendaccendere
  • accensionaccensiōnem

Quick answers

What does accendō mean in Latin?
accendō, a verb, means “to kindle or light (a fire); to inflame or arouse”.
What are the principal parts of accendō?
accendō, accendere, accendī, accēnsum (third conjugation).
How do you pronounce accendō?
In classical Latin, [akˈkɛn.doː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [atˈt͡ʃɛn.do].
Where does accendō come from?
Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd → Proto-Italic *ad → Proto-Italic *ad- → Latin accendō.
Which English words come from accendō?
English words that go back to Latin accendō include accend, accensor and accension.