LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · masculinethird declension

dictātor

dictātor m (genitive dictātōris, feminine dictātrīx)
Classical[dɪkˈtaː.tɔr]Ecclesiastical[dikˈtaː.tor]

Meaning

  1. an elected chief magistrate
  2. one who dictates

In the readers how our graded readers gloss it

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativedictātordictātōrēs
genitivedictātōrisdictātōrum
dativedictātōrīdictātōribus
accusativedictātōremdictātōrēs
ablativedictātōredictātōribus
vocativedictātordictātōrēs

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

dictatorem dicere (creare)
to name a person dictator.

dictātor, ōris, m. dicto, qs. a commander.
I. A dictator, the chief magistrate in several Italian states, elected by the Romans in seasons of emergency for six months, and armed with absolute authority; formerly called Magister populi, and also Praetor Maximus, Cic. Leg. 3, 3, 9; id. Rep. 1, 40; Liv. 7, 3; Cic. Rep. 2, 32; Liv. 2, 18; Lydus de Magistr. 1, 36-38 et saep.; cf. Mommsen, Hist. Book I. ch. 2; 1, p. 330 N. Y. ed. Anthon's Smith's Antiq. p. 360; Kreuz. Excurs. XII. to Cic. Leg. p. 509.—The chief magistrate of other cities of Italy, Cic. Mil. 10; Liv. 1, 23; Spart. Hadr. 18; Inscr. Orell. 112; 2293; 3786 al.—
B. Transf., of Hannibal, as chief of the Carthaginians, Column. Rostr.; cf. Cato ap. Gell. 10, 24, 7.—
II. Qui dictat, one who dictates, Salv. Ep. 9 med.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*deyḱ-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*déyḱeti
  3. Proto-Italic*deikō
  4. Latindictātor

Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Italic *-tos Latin -tus Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Latin -tō Latin dictō Proto-Indo-European *-tōr Proto-Italic *-tōr Latin -tor Latin dictātor From dictō (“to dictate, prescribe, order”) + -tor m (masculine agentive suffix).

Elsewhere
  • Catalandictador
  • Frenchdictateur
  • Italiandittatore
  • Italiandettatore
  • Portugueseditador
  • Romaniandictator
  • Spanishdictador
  • Englishdictator
  • Englishdictatour
  • GermanDiktator
Serbo-Croatian
  • Cyrillic scriptдѝкта̄тор
  • Latin scriptdìktātor

In English words that came into English from dictātor

  • dictatordictātor
  • dictatorydictātōrius

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

AntiquitiesDictatorDictator an extraordinary magistrate at Rome. The origin of the name is obscure, the derivation given by Cicero (de Rep. 1.40, 63), dictator ab eo app…

Quick answers

What does dictātor mean in Latin?
dictātor, a noun, means “an elected chief magistrate; one who dictates”.
What is the genitive of dictātor?
The genitive singular is dictātōris. dictātor is masculine, third declension.
How do you pronounce dictātor?
In classical Latin, [dɪkˈtaː.tɔr]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [dikˈtaː.tor].
Where does dictātor come from?
Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- → Proto-Indo-European *déyḱeti → Proto-Italic *deikō → Latin dictātor.