LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · masculinesecond declension

cibus

cibus m (genitive cibī)
Classical[ˈkɪ.bʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈt͡ʃiː.bus]
№ 863 of the 1,000 commonest wordsMille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. masculinefood, fodder
    Nōn prōdest cibus nec corporī accēdit quī statim sūmptus ēmittitur.Food provides no benefit nor joins with the body if it is immediately expelled.c. 4 BCE – 65 CE, Seneca Minor, Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium 1.2.3
  2. masculinenourishment, sustenance
  3. masculinemetonymicallymeal

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

id quod edimus: pānis, māla, carō; sine cibō vīvere nōn possumus.
cibus -ī m — in Mille Verba, Domus et Familia

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Alimenta · Penus · Cibus · Esca · Edulia · Cibare · Pascere

1. Alimenta and penus are victuals in general, meat and drink; alimenta, mostly with reference to the wants of an individual; penus, to the wants of a whole family. Cibus and esca denote ‘food,’ in opposition to drink. Cic. Fin. i. 11, and ii. 28. Cibus (from γεύω, to chew), natural food, as a means of nourishment; esca (from ἔδω), ‘the food’ that is artificially prepared as a dish. Hence cibus denotes the food of brutes also; but esca, only a bait, prepared as it were like a dish, and set before them. Cic. N. D. ii. 47. Animalia cibum partim dentibus capessunt: compare this with ii. 23. Dii nec escis nec potionibus vescuntur. 2. Cibaria are the most general and usual sorts of food; edulia are savory and select sorts of food. Suet. Tib. 46. Comites nunquam salario, cibariis tantum sustentavit; compare with Cal. 40. Pro eduliis certum statumque exigebatur. 3. Cibare means to feed with one’s hand, as nurses, etc.; pascere (from πάσασθαι), only to give out food, as a feeder or master. Suet. Tib. 72. Draconem manu sua cibaturus; compare with Vesp. 18. Sineret se plebeculam pascere. (v. 192.)

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativecibuscibī
genitivecibīcibōrum
dativecibōcibīs
accusativecibumcibōs
ablativecibōcibīs
vocativecibecibī

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

cibus delicatus
delicacies.
cibo se abstinere
to abstain from all nourishment.
cibum sumere, capere
to take food.
cibum concoquere, conficere
to digest food.
multi cibi esse, edacem esse
to be a great eater.
cibum apponere, ponere alicui
to set food before a person.
corpus curare (cibo, vino, somno)
to refresh oneself, minister to one's bodily wants.
famem sitimque depellere cibo et potione
to allay one's hunger, thirst.
1 more phrases
tantum cibi et potionis adhibere quantum satis est
to take only enough food to support life.

cĭbus, i, m. perh. root of capio,
I. food for man and beast, victuals, fare, nutriment, fodder (class. in prose and poetry, both in sing. and plur.; syn.: esca, epulae; opp. potio, Cic. Fin. 1, 11, 37; cf. id. N. D. 2, 54, 136; so, cibus potusque, Tac. A. 13, 16: cibus et vinum, Cic. Div. 1, 29, 60; Juv. 10, 203: unda cibusque, Ov. M. 4, 262): cibum capere, Plaut. Trin. 4, 2, 60; Ter. Eun. 2, 3, 77: petere, id. ib. 3, 2, 38; id. Heaut. 5, 2, 25: capessere (of animals), Cic. N. D. 2, 47, 122: sumere, Nep. Att. 21, 6; Plin. 30, 5, 12, § 36: tantum cibi et potionis adhibendum, etc., Cic. Sen. 11, 36: digerere, Quint. 11, 2, 35; cf. id. 11, 3, 19: coquere, Varr. R. R. 2, 10, 7: concoquere, Cic. Fin. 2, 20, 64: mandere, id. N. D. 2, 54, 134: cibos suppeditare, id. Leg. 2, 27, 67: (Cleanthes) negat ullum esse cibum tam gravem, quin is die et nocte concoquatur, id. N. D. 2, 9, 24; cf.: suavissimus et idem facillimus ad concoquendum, id. Fin. 2, 20, 64: flentes orabant, ut se cibo juvarent, Caes. B. G. 7, 78 fin.: cibus animalis, the means of nourishment in the air, Cic. N. D. 2, 55, 136: cibi bubuli, Varr. R. R. 2, 11, 3; 1, 23, 2: cibus erat caro ferina, Sall. J. 18, 1: cum tenues hamos abdidit ante cibus, the bait, Tib. 2, 6, 24; Ov. M. 8, 856; 15, 476.—
B. Transf. to the nourishment of plants, the nutritive juice, Lucr. 1, 353; Plin. 17, 2, 2, § 12.—
II. Trop., food, sustenance (rare): quasi quidam humanitatis cibus, Cic. Fin. 5, 19, 54: cibus furoris, Ov. M. 6, 480: causa cibusque mali, id. R. Am. 138.

Origins

Of unknown origin. Perhaps borrowed from Ancient Greek κίβος (kíbos, “box, chest”) / κίβισις (kíbisis, “pouch”).

Insular Romance
  • Sardinianchibu
  • Sardinianchivu
  • Sardinianchiu
  • Sardiniancriu
  • Sardiniancria
  • Sardinianciu
  • Sardiniangiu
Borrowings
  • Italiancibo
  • Portuguesecibo
  • Romaniancib
  • Spanishcibo
Ibero-Romance
  • Portuguesecevo
  • Spanishcebo
  • Asturiancebu
  • Galiciancebo
Italo-Romance
  • Italiancivo
  • Neapolitancivo
  • Siciliancivu

In English words that came into English from cibus

  • cibophobiacibus
  • precibalcibus
  • cibariouscibarius
  • cibationcibatio

Quick answers

What does cibus mean in Latin?
cibus, a noun, means “food, fodder; nourishment, sustenance; meal”.
What is the genitive of cibus?
The genitive singular is cibī. cibus is masculine, second declension.
How do you pronounce cibus?
In classical Latin, [ˈkɪ.bʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈt͡ʃiː.bus].
Which English words come from cibus?
English words that go back to Latin cibus include cibophobia, precibal, cibarious and cibation.