LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · neutersecond declension

capitulum

capitulum n (genitive capitulī)
Classical[kaˈpɪ.tʊ.ɫũː]Ecclesiastical[kaˈpiː.tu.lum]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. neuterA head-like object or structure.
  2. Late LatinneuterA prominent section or formal division of a text.
  3. Late LatinneuterVarious civic and ecclesiastical councils or bodies, as cathedral chapters.

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

parva pars librī; hic liber multa capitula habet.
capitulum -ī n — in Mille Verba, Artēs et Litterae

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativecapitulumcapitula
genitivecapitulīcapitulōrum
dativecapitulōcapitulīs
accusativecapitulumcapitula
ablativecapitulōcapitulīs
vocativecapitulumcapitula

căpĭtŭlum, i, n. dim. caput.
I. Lit., a small head, of man or beast: operto capitulo bibere, Plaut. Curc. 2, 3, 14.— Hence, in the lang. of comedy, for a man, Plaut. As. 2, 4, 89; and as a term of endearment: o capitulum lepidissimum, most charming creature, Ter. Eun. 3, 3, 25: haedi, Cels. 2, 22.—
B. Of plants: caepae, Col. 11, 3, 15: sarmenti, id. 3, 77, 4: torcularii, Cato, R. R. 18, 4 al. (perh. also ramulorum, Plin. 24, 19, 113, § 173; 27, 5, 20, § 37; cf. capitellum).—
II. Transf.
A. In architecture.
1. The capital or chapiter of a column, Vitr. 3, 3; 4, 1; Plin. 36, 23, 56, § 178 sq.—
2. The capital of a triglyph, Vitr. 4, 3, 8.—
3. The cross-beam of warlike engines, Vitr. 1, 1; 10, 17.—
B. In late Lat., a covering for the head of females, Isid. Orig. 19, 31, 3; cf. Varr. ap. Non. p. 542, 30.—
C. Also late Lat., a prominent part or division of a writing, a chapter, section, Tert. adv. Jud. 9, 19; Hier. in Ezech. c. 47 fin.—
D. A section of a law, Cod. Just. 5, 37, 28.—
E. The raising of recruits (as an office), Cod. Th. 11, 16, 15.
Căpĭtŭlum, i, n.,
I. a town of the Hernici in Latium, now perh. Paliano, Plin. 3, 5, 9, § 63.—Hence, Căpĭtŭlen-ses, ĭum, m., the inhabitants of Capitulum, Dig. 50, 15, 8, § 7.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*kap-?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*kap-
  3. Proto-Indo-European*káput
  4. Proto-Italic*kaput
  5. Latincapitulum

Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-elós Proto-Italic *-elos Latin -ulum Latin capitulum From caput (“head”) + -ulum (diminutive suffix). Compare typologically Ancient Greek κεφάλαιον (kephálaion), Bulgarian глава (glava), Russian глава́ (glavá), Serbo-Croatian поглавље.

Descendants
  • Catalancapítol
  • Catalancapítula
  • Englishcapitulum
  • Englishcapitule
  • Frenchcapitule
  • Romaniancapitulfrom French capitule
  • GermanKapitelfrom Old High German kapital
  • GermanCapitelfrom Old High German kapital
  • Italiancapecchio
  • Italiancapitolo

Quick answers

What does capitulum mean in Latin?
capitulum, a noun, means “A head-like object or structure.”.
What is the genitive of capitulum?
The genitive singular is capitulī. capitulum is neuter, second declension.
How do you pronounce capitulum?
In classical Latin, [kaˈpɪ.tʊ.ɫũː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [kaˈpiː.tu.lum].
Where does capitulum come from?
Proto-Indo-European *kap-? → Proto-Indo-European *kap- → Proto-Indo-European *káput → Proto-Italic *kaput → Latin capitulum.