LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · neutersecond declension

argentum

argentum n (genitive argentī)
Classical[arˈɡɛn.tũː]Ecclesiastical[arˈd͡ʒɛn.tum]
№ 849 of the 1,000 commonest wordsMille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. neuteruncountablesilver (metal, element)
    Tacitus Germania, chapter 5 (translation M. Hutton). Argentum et aurum propitiine an irati di negaverint dubito. The gods have denied them gold and silver, whether in mercy or wrath I find it hard to say.
  2. broadlyneutera silver thing

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

metallum album et pretiōsum; ex argentō nummī fīunt.
argentum -ī n — in Mille Verba, ch. Vestis et Ōrnāmenta

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativeargentumargenta
☽ta
genitiveargentī
☽tī		argentōrum
☽tōrum
dativeargentō
☽tō		argentīs
☽tīs
accusativeargentumargenta
☽ta
ablativeargentō
☽tō		argentīs
☽tīs
vocativeargentumargenta
☽ta

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

aes (argentum) signatum
coined money; bullion.
argentum (factum) (Verr. 5. 25. 63)
silver plate.

argentum, i, n. ἀργήεις, ἀργής, Dor. ἀργᾶς, white, like Tarentum, from Τάρας, Doed. Syn. III. p. 193; prop. white metal; cf. Sanscr. arǵunas = bright; raǵatam = silver; hence,
I. silver, whose mineralogical description is found in Plin. 33, 6, 31, § 95.
I. A.. Lit.: argenti metalla, Plin. 33, 6, 33, § 101: argenti aerisque metalla, Vulg. Exod. 35, 24: argenti vena, Plin. 33, 6, 31, § 95: argenti fodina, v. argenti-fodina; argenti scoria, id. 3, 6, 5, § 105: spuma argenti, id. 33, 6, 35, § 106: argenti duae differentiae (sunt), id. 33, 10, 44, § 127: argentum candidum, rufum, nigrum, id. ib.: argentum infectum, unwrought silver, Liv. 26, 47; Dig. 34, 2, 19: argenti montes, Plaut. Mil. 4, 2, 73: argentum purum, Foedus ap. Gell. 6, 5: argento circumcludere cornua, Caes. B. G. 6, 28: Concisum argentum in titulos faciesque minutas, Juv. 14, 291: quod usquam est Auri atque argenti, id. 8, 123: argentum et aurum, Tac. G. 5; id. A. 2, 60, id. H. 4, 53; Vulg. Gen. 24, 35: aurum argentumque, Tac. H. 2. 82: aurum et argentum, Vulg. Gen. 13, 2.—
B. Meton.
1. Wrought silver, things made of silver; silver-plate, silver-work: tu argentum eluito, Plaut. Ps. 1, 2, 29: nec domus argento fulget auroque renidet, Lucr. 2, 27; so, ridet argento domus, Hor. C. 4, 11, 6: argenti quod erat solis fulgebat in armis, Juv. 11, 109: argentumque expositum in aedibus, Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 15: navis plena argenti facti atque signati, full of wrought and stamped silver, id. ib. 2, 5, 25; so Liv. 34, 25 and 26: argentum caelatum, Cic. Verr. 4, 23, 52; id. Tusc. 5, 21, 61: apponitur cena in argento puro et antiquo, Plin. Ep. 3, 1, 9: argentum et marmor vetus aeraque et artīs Suspice, Hor. Ep. 1, 6, 17; so id. ib. 1, 16, 76; 2, 2, 181; id. S. 1, 4, 28: argenti vascula puri, Juv. 9, 141; 10, 19: vasa omnia ex argento, Vulg. Num. 7, 85; ib. Act. 17, 29: leve argentum, Juv. 14, 62: argentum paternum, id. 6, 355: argentum vetus, id. 1, 76: argentum mittere, id. 12, 43: Empturus pueros, argentum, murrina, villas, id. 7, 133 et saep.—
2. Silver as weighed out for money, or money coined from silver, silver, silver money; and, as the most current coin, for money in gen.: appendit pecuniam, quadringentos siclos argenti, Vulg. Gen. 23, 16: Ratio quidem hercle adparet; argentum οἴχεται, Plaut. Trin. 2, 4, 15 sq. (quoted by Cic., Pis. 25 fin.): expetere, id. Cist. 4, 2, 73: adnumerare, Ter. Ad. 3, 3, 15; so id. Heaut. 4, 4, 15; id. Ad. 3, 3, 56; 4, 4, 20; 5, 9, 20 al.: argenti sitis famesque, Hor. Ep. 1, 18, 23; id. S. 1, 1, 86: quis audet Argento praeferre caput, Juv. 12, 49: tenue argentum venaeque secundae, id. 9, 31: hic modium argenti, id. 3, 220: venter Argenti gravis capax, id. 11, 41: Argentum et aurum non est mihi, Vulg. Act. 3, 6; 20, 35 et saep.—
II. Argentum vivum, quicksilver, Plin. 33, 6, 32, § 100; Vitr. 7, 8, 1 sqq.; so, argentum liquidum, Isid. Orig. 16, 19, 2.

Origins

From Proto-Italic *argentom n, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ŕ̥ǵn̥tom n.

Insular Romance
  • Sardinianarghentu
  • Sardinianargentu
Italo-Dalmatian
  • Italianargento
  • Italianariento
  • Galluresealgentufrom Corsican argentu
  • Dalmatianarziant
  • Istriotarſénto
  • Judeo-Italianאַרְיֵינְטוֹ
  • Neapolitanargiento
  • Sicilianargentu
  • Sicilianarjentu
  • Venetanarxento
Gallo-Romance
  • Catalanargent
  • Occitanargentfrom Old Occitan argent
  • Old Frenchargent
  • Old Spanishargentfrom Old Occitan argent
Borrowings
  • Portugueseargento
  • Spanishargento
  • Galicianarxento
  • Malayargentum
Balkano-Romance
  • Romanianargint
  • Megleno-Romanianarzint
  • Megleno-Romanianarzintu
  • Megleno-Romanianrăzint
  • Aromanianargheandufrom Albanian argjend
Rhaeto-Romance
  • Friulianarint
  • Ladinarjent
  • Ladinardento
  • Romanshargient
  • Romanshargien
Gallo-Italic
  • Emilianarżänt
  • Ligurianargénto
  • Lombardarsgent
  • Lombardarzent
  • Piedmonteseargent
  • Romagnolarẓént
Ibero-Romance
  • Aragonesearchent
  • Asturianarxén
  • Asturianarxentu
  • Old Galician-Portuguesearento
  • Old Spanishariento

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

AntiquitiesArgentumArgentum The use of silver among the Greeks, although no doubt later introduced than that of gold, dates from pre-historic times. In the archaic tombs…

Quick answers

What does argentum mean in Latin?
argentum, a noun, means “silver (metal, element); a silver thing”.
What is the genitive of argentum?
The genitive singular is argentī. argentum is neuter, second declension.
How do you pronounce argentum?
In classical Latin, [arˈɡɛn.tũː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [arˈd͡ʒɛn.tum].