LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · femininethird declension

altrīx1

altrīx f (genitive altrīcis, masculine altor)
Classical[ˈaɫ.triːks]Ecclesiastical[ˈal.triks]

Meaning

  1. nourisher, cherisher, sustainer (female)
  2. wetnurse / wet-nurse / wet nurse
  3. foster mother
  4. motherland

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

nūtrīx, quae īnfantem aluit
altrīx -īcis (f) — in Metamorphoses I, ch. 23

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativealtrīxaltrīcēs
genitivealtrīcisaltrīcum
dativealtrīcīaltrīcibus
accusativealtrīcemaltrīcēs
ablativealtrīcealtrīcibus
vocativealtrīxaltrīcēs

altrix, īcis, f. altor,
I. a female nourisher, cherisher, sustainer (mostly poet.; cf. alumnus): Calydonia altrix terra exsuperantum virum, Pac. ap. Varr. L. L. 7, § 18 Müll.: eorum eadem terra parens, altrix, patria dicitur, Cic. Fl. 26; id. Tim. 10: altricem Ulixi, Verg. A. 3, 273.—Without terra: altricis extra limen Apuliae, * Hor. C. 3, 4, 10; so once in Cic.: Romani nominis, Poët. ap. Cic. Div. 1, 12, 20: Idā altrice relictā (since Hermaphroditus had been brought up there), Ov. M. 4, 293: Sanguinis altricem non pudet esse lupam, * Prop. 5, 1, 38: bellorum bellatorumque virorum, Sil. 1, 218. —Esp., of a wet-nurse, Ov. M. 11, 683; so Stat. Th. 1, 602; Sil. 2, 1, 96; Sen. Hippol. 251; id. Herc. Oet. 450; Gell. 12, 20.

Origins

From alō, altum (“to encourage or promote the development (of a thing)”, verb) + -trīx f (“-ess”, agentive suffix).

Descendants
  • Englishaltricial
adjectivethird-declension defective adjective (feminine-only when singular, feminine or neuter when plural)
altrīx2
altrīx (feminine altrīx)
Classical[ˈaɫ.triːks]Ecclesiastical[ˈal.triks]

Meaning

  1. adjectivedefectivenourishing
    Nobis per communia peccatorum secreta vivendum potius, quam obeundum est: matris Ecclesiae ope sociata, quae utrosque, ut vera loquamur, fidei ubere lacte pascit altrici.c. 494 CE – 521 CE, Ennodius, Epistolae 1.9
    Saepe mihi labor efficax inquirenti altricia terga fulvi ostendit elementi.c. 494 CE – 521 CE, Ennodius, Epistolae 1.18

Declension

singular
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominative—altrīx—
genitive—altrīcis—
dative—altrīcī—
accusative—altrīcem—
ablative—altrīce
altrīcī		—
vocative—altrīx—
plural
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominative—altrīcēsaltrīcia
genitive—altrīciumaltrīcium
dative—altrīcibusaltrīcibus
accusative—altrīcēsaltrīcia
ablative—altrīcibusaltrīcibus
vocative—altrīcēsaltrīcia

Origins

From alō, altum (“to encourage or promote the development (of a thing)”, verb) + -trīx f (“-ess”, agentive suffix).

Quick answers

What does altrīx mean in Latin?
altrīx, a noun, means “nourisher, cherisher, sustainer (female); wetnurse / wet-nurse / wet nurse; foster mother”.
What is the genitive of altrīx?
The genitive singular is altrīcis. altrīx is feminine, third declension.
How do you pronounce altrīx?
In classical Latin, [ˈaɫ.triːks]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈal.triks].