LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
verbthird conjugation, no passive

crēscō

crēscō (present infinitive crēscere, perfect active crēvī, supine crētum)
Classical[ˈkreːs.koː]Ecclesiastical[ˈkrɛs.ko]
crēscēns pres. act. ptcp.№ 609 of the 1,000 commonest wordsMille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. to rise, grow, grow up; prosper, thrive; increase, multiply, augment
    ‘tū sata sīderibus caelī nūtrīta secundīs crēscere, dum fīant falcibus apta, sinās.’ “May you allow the crops – having been nourished by the stars of favorable heaven – to thrive, until they become ready for the sickles.” (A prayer spoken by the Flamen Quirinalis during the Robigalia to propitiate the deity Robigo or Robigus and prevent agricultural diseases.)8 CE, Ovidius, Fasti 4.913–914
  2. to come to be
  3. to become visible, spring from, arise, come forth

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

Conjugation conjugation 3

active indicative
formpresentimperfectfutureperfectpluperfectfut. perfect
1st sg.crēscōcrēscēbamcrēscamcrēvīcrēveramcrēverō
2nd sg.crēsciscrēscēbāscrēscēscrēvistīcrēverāscrēveris
3rd sg.crēscitcrēscēbatcrēscetcrēvitcrēveratcrēverit
1st pl.crēscimuscrēscēbāmuscrēscēmuscrēvimuscrēverāmuscrēverimus
2nd pl.crēscitiscrēscēbātiscrēscētiscrēvistiscrēverātiscrēveritis
3rd pl.crēscuntcrēscēbantcrēscentcrēvērunt
crēvēre
crēverantcrēverint
active subjunctive
active subjunctive
formpresentimperfectperfectpluperfect
1st sg.crēscamcrēsceremcrēverimcrēvissem
2nd sg.crēscāscrēscerēscrēverīscrēvissēs
3rd sg.crēscatcrēsceretcrēveritcrēvisset
1st pl.crēscāmuscrēscerēmuscrēverīmuscrēvissēmus
2nd pl.crēscātiscrēscerētiscrēverītiscrēvissētis
3rd pl.crēscantcrēscerentcrēverintcrēvissent
imperative
imperative
formactivepassive
pres. 2nd sg.crēsce—
pres. 2nd pl.crēscite—
fut. 2nd sg.crēscitō—
fut. 3rd sg.crēscitō—
fut. 2nd pl.crēscitōte—
fut. 3rd pl.crēscuntō—
infinitives & participles
formactivepassive
present infinitivecrēscere—
perfect infinitivecrēvisse—
future infinitivecrētūrum esse—
present participlecrēscēns
crēscente, crēscentem, crēscentēs, crēscentī, crēscentia, crēscentibus, crēscentis, crēscentīs, crēscentium
—
future participlecrētūrus
crētūra, crētūrā, crētūrae, crētūram, crētūrārum, crētūrās, crētūre, crētūrī, crētūrīs, crētūrō, crētūrōrum, crētūrōs, crētūrum
—
gerundcrēscendī, crēscendō, crēscendumsupinecrētum, crētū

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

crescere ex aliquo
to raise oneself by another's fall.
materia mihi crescit
my subject grows as I write.
annona ingravescit, crescit
the price of corn is going up.
crescere ex invidia senatoria
to profit by the unpopularity of the senate to gain influence oneself.
animus alicui accedit, crescit
to take courage.
luna crescit; decrescit, senescit
the moon waxes, wanes.

cresco, crēvi, crētum, 3 (
I. inf. perf. sync. cresse, Lucr. 3, 683), v. inch. n. [1. creo].
I. Orig., of things not previously in existence, to come forth, grow, to arise, spring, be born, become visible, appear (so mostly poet.)
A. Lit.: cetera, quae sursum crescunt sursumque creantur, Lucr. 6, 527: quaecumque e terrā corpora crescunt (for which, subsequently, exoriuntur), id. 1, 868: corpore de patrio ac materno sanguine crescunt, id. 4, 1210: hic et acanthus Et rosa crescit, Verg. Cul. 397.—So esp. freq. in part. perf.: crētus, a, um, arisen, sprung, descended from, born of; with abl.: mortali corpore cretus, Lucr. 5, 6; 2, 906; cf.: mortali semine, Ov. M. 15, 760: corpore materno, Lucr. 4, 1224: nativo corpore, id. 5, 61: Semiramio sanguine, Ov. M. 5, 85; cf. id. ib. 13, 31: Amyntore, id. ib. 8, 307; cf. Verg. A. 9, 672; Ov. M. 13, 750.—With ab: ab origine eādem, Ov. M. 4, 607; cf.: Trojano a sanguine, Verg. A. 4, 191.—
B. Trop.: haec villa inter manus meas crevit, Sen. Ep. 12, 1: ingens hic terris crescit labor, Sil. 3, 75.—Far more freq.,
II. Of things already in existence, to rise in height, to rise, grow, grow up, thrive, increase, etc.
A. Lit.: arbores, Lucr. 1, 254; so, fruges, arbusta, animantes, id. 1, 808: omnia paulatim crescunt (with grandescere alique), id. 1, 190 sq.: ut (ostrea) cum lunā pariter crescant pariterque decrescant, Cic. Div. 2, 14, 33: in lecticis crescunt (infantes), Quint. 1, 2, 7: cresce, puer, Ov. M. 2, 643 et saep.: in cujus domo creverat, had grown up, been reared, Suet. Oth. 1; cf.: Alexander per quinquennium sub Aristotele doctore mclito crevit, Just. 12, 16, 8: Nilus in aestatem crescit campisque redundat, Lucr. 6, 713; cf. of the same, id. 6, 737: Liger ex nivibus creverat, Caes. B. G. 7, 55 fin.: in frondem crines, in ramos bracchia, to grow into, Ov. M. 1, 550; cf.: in ungues manus, id. ib. 2, 479: in immensum Atlas, id. ib. 4, 661: in latitudinem, to increase in breadth, Col. Arb. 17: in longitudinem, Plin. 11, 37, 87, § 216: super ora caputque onus, Ov. M. 12, 516: ut clivo crevisse putes, id. ib. 8, 191 et saep. —
2. Transf., to increase in number to, augment, multiply: non mihi absenti crevisse amicos, Cic. Sest. 32, 69 (B. and K. ex conj. decrevisse): adhuc crescentibus annis, Ov. A. A. 1, 61.—
B. Trop.
1. In gen., to grow, increase, to be enlarged or strengthened: cum Atheniensium opes senescere, contra Lacedaemoniorum crescere videret, Nep. Alcib. 5, 3; so, hostium opes animique, Cic. Imp. Pomp. 15, 45: non animi tantum, sed etiam vires crescebant, Liv. 5, 46, 4: animus laude crescit, Quint. 1, 2, 3; Curt. 4, 6, 13; Just. 19, 1, 8: animus crevit praetori, Liv. 44, 4, 1: cujusvis opes contra illius potentiam, Sall. C. 17, 7: cujusquam regnum per scelus, id. J. 14, 7: potentia paucorum (opp. plebis opes imminutae), id. C. 39, 1; Liv. 4, 2, 2 et saep.: haec (mala) primo paulatim, Sall. C. 10, 6: primo pecuniae, deinde imperii cupido, id. ib. 10, 3: fuga atque formido latius, id. J. 55, 7: licentia, id. C. 51, 30: inopia omnium, Liv. 21, 11, 12: rerum cognitio cottidie, Quint. 12, 11, 17: quā ex re creverat cum famā tum opibus, Nep. Alcib. 7 fin.; cf.: (Saguntini) in tantas brevi creverant opes, Liv. 21, 7, 3: Rhodiorum civitas populi Romani opibus, Sall. C. 51, 5; cf.: qui malo rei publicae, id. ib. 51, 32: usque ego postera Crescam laude recens, Hor. C. 3, 30, 8: a brevibus in longas (iambi), Quint. 9, 4, 136.—
2. In partic., to rise or increase in distinction, honor, courage, etc., to be promoted or advanced, to prosper, to become great, attain honor: accusarem alios potius, ex quibus possem crescere, Cic. Rosc. Am. 30, 83: ex invidiā senatoriā, id. Clu. 28, 77: ex his, Liv. 29, 37, 17: ex me, id. 35, 19, 5: de uno isto, de multis, Cic. Verr. 2, 5, 67, § 173: dignitate, gratiā, Nep. Att. 21, 1; cf. id. ib. 10, 3; and absol.: crescendi in curiā occasio, Liv. 1, 46, 2: cresco et exsulto et discussā senectute recalesco, quotiens, etc., Sen. Ep. 34, 1; cf.: gaudet et ex nostro crescit maerore Charaxus, Ov. H. 15, 117: hic uno modo crescere potest, si se ipse summittat, etc., Plin. Pan. 71, 4.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*ḱer-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*ḱreh₁-sḱéti
  3. Latincrēscō

Inherited from Proto-Indo-European *ḱreh₁-sḱéti, from the root *ḱer- (“to grow, become bigger”), whence also Latin creō, as well as perhaps Proto-Slavic *krěti (“to intensify”).

Insular Romance
  • Sardiniancrèschere
  • Sardiniancrèscere
  • Sardiniancreschi
  • Sardiniancrèsciri
Elsewhere
  • Italiandiscrescerefrom Vulgar Latin *discrescere
  • Frenchdécroîtrefrom Vulgar Latin *discrescere
  • Englishdecreasefrom Vulgar Latin *discrescere
  • Old Spanishdescrecerfrom Vulgar Latin *discrescere
Balkano-Romance
  • Romaniancrește
  • Romaniancreștere
  • Aromaniancrescu
  • Aromaniancreashtiri
  • Megleno-Romaniancresc
  • Megleno-Romaniancreaștiri
Gallo-Romance
  • Catalancréixer
  • Occitancréisser
  • Franco-Provençalcrêtre
  • Old Frenchcroistre
Ibero-Romance
  • Portuguesecrescerfrom Old Galician-Portuguese crecer
  • Spanishcrecerfrom Old Spanish cresçer
  • Aragonesecreixer
  • Aragonesecrexer
  • Asturiancrecer
  • Galiciancrecerfrom Old Galician-Portuguese crecer
  • Ladinocrecerfrom Old Spanish cresçer
Italo-Dalmatian
  • Italiancrescere
  • Corsicancrescia
  • Dalmatiancrescro
  • Dalmatiancrascro
  • Dalmatiancraskro
  • Istriotcrìssi
  • Neapolitancresce
  • Siciliancrìsciri
  • Venetancréser
  • Venetancrésar
Borrowings
  • EnglishCresco
  • Idokreskarfrom Esperanto kreski
  • Interlinguacrescer
Rhaeto-Romance
  • Friuliancressi
  • Friuliancreši
  • Ladincresce
  • Ladincrescer
  • Ladincrësce
  • Ladincrëscer
  • Romanshcrescher
Gallo-Italic
  • Emiliancràsser
  • Liguriancresce
  • Piedmontesechërse

Quick answers

What does crēscō mean in Latin?
crēscō, a verb, means “to rise, grow, grow up; prosper, thrive; increase, multiply, augment”.
What are the principal parts of crēscō?
crēscō, crēscere, crēvī, crētum (third conjugation, no passive).
How do you pronounce crēscō?
In classical Latin, [ˈkreːs.koː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈkrɛs.ko].
Where does crēscō come from?
Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- → Proto-Indo-European *ḱreh₁-sḱéti → Latin crēscō.