LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective

bibulus

bibulus (feminine bibula, neuter bibulum)
Classical[ˈbɪ.bʊ.ɫʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈbiː.bu.lus]

Meaning

  1. adjectivefond of drinking; drinking readily or freely; frequently thirsty; bibulous
    […]; potores bibuli media de nocte Falerni oderunt porrecta negantem pocula, quamvis nocturnos iures te formidare tepores.20 BCE – 14 BCE, Horatius, Epistulae 1.18
  2. adjectivethat sucks in or absorbs; absorbent, porous, bibulous
    Quod superest, quaecumque premes virgulta per agros, Sparge fimo pingui et multa memor occule terra, Aut lapidem bibulum aut squalentis infode conchas; Inter enim labentur aquae tenuisque subibit Halitus atque animos tollent sata; iamque reperti, Qui saxo super atque ingentis pondere testae Urgerent; hoc effusos munimen ad imbris,Translation by James B. Greenough For the rest, whate'er The sets thou plantest in thy fields, thereon Strew refuse rich, and with abundant earth Take heed to hide them, and dig in withal Rough shells or porous stone, for therebetween Will water trickle and fine vapour creep, And so the plants their drooping spirits raise. Aye, and there have been, who with weight of stone Or heavy potsherd press them from above; This serves for shield in pelting showers, and this When the hot dog-star chaps the fields with drought.c. 37 BCE – 30 BCE, Vergilius, Georgicon 2.346–353
  3. adjectivefigurativelyready to hear; thirsty to listen; listening
    ‘Egregium cum me vicinia dicat, non credam?’ viso si palles, inprobe, nummo, si facis in penem quidquid tibi venit, amarum si puteal multa cautus vibice flagellas, nequiquam populo bibulas donaveris aures.c. 62 CE, Persius, Saturae 4

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

Declension

singular
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativebibulusbibulabibulum
genitivebibulībibulaebibulī
dativebibulōbibulaebibulō
accusativebibulumbibulambibulum
ablativebibulōbibulābibulō
vocativebibulebibulabibulum
plural
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativebibulībibulaebibula
genitivebibulōrumbibulārumbibulōrum
dativebibulīsbibulīsbibulīs
accusativebibulōsbibulāsbibula
ablativebibulīsbibulīsbibulīs
vocativebibulībibulaebibula

bĭbŭlus, a, um, adj. 1. bibo.
I. Lit., drinking readily, freely (poet. or in postAug. prose): bibulus Falerni, Hor. Ep. 1, 14, 34: potores, id. ib. 1, 18, 91.—More freq.,
B. Transf., of inanim. things, that sucks in or absorbs moisture: harena, sand that imbibes, drinks up moisture, Lucr. 2, 376; Verg. G. 1, 114; Ov. M. 13, 901: lapis, a stone that absorbs moisture, Verg. G. 2, 348 (qui harenarius vocatur, Serv.); Col. 3, 15, 4: litus, Ov. H. 16 (17), 139: favilla, Verg. A. 6, 227: radix, Ov. M. 14, 632: talaria, moistened, id. ib. 4, 730: medulla, id. ib. 4, 744: ollae bibulae aut male coctae, Col. 12, 45, 3: papyrus, growing in moist places, Luc. 4, 136: charta, blotting-paper, Plin. Ep. 8, 15, 2; cf. Isid. Orig. 6, 10, 1: taenia papyri, Plin. 13, 12, 25, § 81: nubes, Ov. M. 14, 368 (cf. 1. bibo, B. 1.): lanae, absorbing or taking color, id. ib. 6, 9 (v. poto).—
II. Trop., of hearing (cf. 1. bibo, II.): aures, ready to hear, listening, Pers. 4, 50.
Bĭbŭlus, i, m.,
I. a proper name.
I. L. Publicius Bibulus, a military tribune in the time of the second Punic war, Liv. 22, 53, 2.—
II. M. (in Appian. Civ. 2, 8, Αεύκιος) Calpurnius Bibulus, a contemporary of Cœsar, consul with him A.U.C. 695, Suet. Caes. 19; 20; 49; cf. Cic. Vatin. 9, 21; id. Fam. 1, 9, 12; id. Att. 1, 17, 11; 2, 14, 1; 2, 19, 2; 6, 1, 13; 6, 8, 5.—
III. C. Bibulus, an œdile A.U.C. 775, Tac. A. 3, 52.

Origins

From bibō (“drink”) + -ulus, from Proto-Italic *pibō, from Proto-Indo-European *píph₃eti, from the root *peh₃- (“drink”).

Descendants
  • Englishbibulous
  • Italianbibulo

Quick answers

What does bibulus mean in Latin?
bibulus, a adjective, means “fond of drinking; drinking readily or freely; frequently thirsty”.
How do you pronounce bibulus?
In classical Latin, [ˈbɪ.bʊ.ɫʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈbiː.bu.lus].