LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
verbfirst conjugation

dictō

dictō (present infinitive dictāre, perfect active dictāvī, supine dictātum)
Classical[ˈdɪk.toː]Ecclesiastical[ˈdik.to]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. to repeat, say often
  2. to dictate (to someone for writing)
  3. to compose, express in writing
  4. to prescribe, recommend, order, dictate

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

verba dīcō quae alter scrībit; dominus servō epistulam dictat.
dictō -āre — in Mille Verba, Artēs et Litterae
prōnūntiō scrībenda
dictō -āre — in Epistulae, ch. 22

Conjugation conjugation 1

active indicative
formpresentimperfectfutureperfectpluperfectfut. perfect
1st sg.dictōdictābamdictābōdictāvīdictāveram
dictāram		dictāverō
dictārō
2nd sg.dictāsdictābāsdictābisdictāvistī
dictāstī		dictāverās
dictārās		dictāveris
dictāris
3rd sg.dictatdictābatdictābitdictāvit
dictāt		dictāverat
dictārat		dictāverit
dictārit
1st pl.dictāmusdictābāmusdictābimusdictāvimus
dictāmus		dictāverāmus
dictārāmus		dictāverimus
dictārimus
2nd pl.dictātisdictābātisdictābitisdictāvistis
dictāstis		dictāverātis
dictārātis		dictāveritis
dictāritis
3rd pl.dictantdictābantdictābuntdictāvērunt
dictārunt, dictāvēre		dictāverant
dictārant		dictāverint
dictārint
active subjunctive
active subjunctive
formpresentimperfectperfectpluperfect
1st sg.dictemdictāremdictāverim
dictārim		dictāvissem
dictāssem
2nd sg.dictēsdictārēsdictāverīs
dictārīs		dictāvissēs
dictāssēs
3rd sg.dictetdictāretdictāverit
dictārit		dictāvisset
dictāsset
1st pl.dictēmusdictārēmusdictāverīmus
dictārīmus		dictāvissēmus
dictāssēmus
2nd pl.dictētisdictārētisdictāverītis
dictārītis		dictāvissētis
dictāssētis
3rd pl.dictentdictārentdictāverint
dictārint		dictāvissent
dictāssent
passive indicative
passive indicative
formpresentimperfectfuture
1st sg.dictordictābardictābor
2nd sg.dictāris
dictāre		dictābāris
dictābāre		dictāberis
dictābere
3rd sg.dictāturdictābāturdictābitur
1st pl.dictāmurdictābāmurdictābimur
2nd pl.dictāminīdictābāminīdictābiminī
3rd pl.dictanturdictābanturdictābuntur
passive subjunctive
passive subjunctive
formpresentimperfect
1st sg.dicterdictārer
2nd sg.dictēris
dictēre		dictārēris
dictārēre
3rd sg.dictēturdictārētur
1st pl.dictēmurdictārēmur
2nd pl.dictēminīdictārēminī
3rd pl.dictenturdictārentur
imperative
imperative
formactivepassive
pres. 2nd sg.dictādictāre
pres. 2nd pl.dictātedictāminī
fut. 2nd sg.dictātōdictātor
fut. 3rd sg.dictātōdictātor
fut. 2nd pl.dictātōte—
fut. 3rd pl.dictantōdictantor
infinitives & participles
infinitives & participles
formactivepassive
present infinitivedictāredictārī
perfect infinitivedictāvisse
dictāsse		dictātum esse
future infinitivedictātūrum essedictātum īrī
present participledictāns
dictante, dictantem, dictantēs, dictantī, dictantia, dictantibus, dictantis, dictantīs, dictantium		—
perfect participle—dictātus
dictāta, dictātā, dictātae, dictātam, dictātārum, dictātās, dictātī, dictātōrum, dictātōs
future participledictātūrus
dictātūra, dictātūrā, dictātūrae, dictātūram, dictātūrārum, dictātūrās, dictātūre, dictātūrī, dictātūrīs, dictātūrō, dictātūrōrum, dictātūrōs, dictātūrum		dictandus
dictanda, dictandā, dictandae, dictandam, dictandārum, dictandās, dictande, dictandīs, dictandōrum, dictandōs
gerunddictandī, dictandō, dictandumsupinedictātum, dictātū

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

dictaturam gerere
to be dictator.
dicta dicere in aliquem
to make jokes on a person.
dicto audientem esse alicui
to obey a person's orders.
dictator dicit (legit) magistrum equitum
a dictator appoints a magister equitum.
non nullus odor est dictaturae (Att. 4. 18)
there are whispers of the appointment of a dictator.

dicto, āvi, ātum, 1, v. freq. a. 2. dico,
I. to say often; to pronounce, declare, or assert repeatedly.
I. In gen. (very rare): rogarem te, ut diceres pro me tu idem, qui illis orationem dictavisses, Cic. Fin. 4, 22 fin.: mercemur servum qui dictet nomina, Hor. Ep. 1, 6, 50; cf. Gell. 4, 1, 2.—Far more freq. and class.,
II. In partic.
A. To dictate to one for writing: quod non modo Tironi dictare, sed ne ipse quidem audere scribere, Cic. Att. 13, 9; 7, 13 b. fin.; 2, 23; Quint. 2, 4, 12; 10, 3, 18; Plin. Ep. 9, 36, 2; Hor. Ep. 1, 10, 49 et saep. So of the dictating of teachers (common for want of books): memini quae mihi parvo Orbilium dictare, Hor. Ep. 2, 1, 71; cf. id. Sat. 1, 10, 75.—
2. Transf. As the practice of dictating came, in the course of time, to be very general (v. Gesner upon Quint. 10, 3, 18), dictare, since the Aug. per., acquired the signif. to express in written language, make, compose: elegidia, Pers. 1, 52; so, ducentos versus, Hor. S. 1, 4, 10: carmina (for which, shortly before and after, scribere), id. Ep. 2, 1, 110: codicillos, to draw up, make, Suet. Tib. 22; cf. testamentum, id. Ner. 32; hence also, summas, i. e. to dispose of by will, Dig. 32, 95; and in the pass.: non unus tibi rivalis dictabitur heres, appointed, designated, Juv. 6, 218; so, actionem, to draw up a declaration, Suet. Rhet. 2; and among jurists in gen., to bring an action, go to law, Dig. 15, 1, 50; also, judicium, ib. 9, 4, 22; 49, 9, 3 al.—
B. To prescribe, recommend, order, dictate (cf. 2. dico, no. I. B. 10; in this sense the primitive of dictator, although no ante-Aug. examples occur): sportulam, Quint. 11, 3, 131: dictataque jurant Sacramenta deis, Sil. 10, 448.—
2. Transf., of abstract subjects: ita videtur ratio dictare, Quint. 3, 4, 11; cf. Dig. 1, 2, § 11: quibus sordet omne, quod natura dictavit, Quint. 8 prooem. § 8; so with acc., id. 1, 3, 16; 2, 15, 6; Plin. 26, 4, 9, § 20.—Hence, dictāta, ōrum, n. (acc. to no. II. A.).
A. Things dictated by the master to his scholars, i. e. lessons, exercises, rules, Cic. Q. Fr. 3, 1, 4; id. Fin. 4, 4, 10; id. N. D. 1, 26; id. Tusc. 2, 11, 96; Hor. Ep. 1, 1, 55; 1, 18, 13; Pers. 1, 29 al.—Also, in gen.,
B. Precepts, rules, e. g. for gladiators, Suet. Caes. 26; for mimes, Juv. 5, 122.

Origins

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

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 dicto From dīcō (“say, speak”) + -tō (frequentative suffix). See dictus.

Descendants
  • Catalandictar
  • Englishdight
  • Englishdictate
  • Frenchdicter
  • Italiandettare
  • Portugueseditar
  • Romaniandicta
  • Romaniandictare
  • Spanishdictar
  • Albaniandëftoj

Quick answers

What does dictō mean in Latin?
dictō, a verb, means “to repeat, say often; to dictate (to someone for writing); to compose, express in writing”.
What are the principal parts of dictō?
dictō, dictāre, dictāvī, dictātum (first conjugation).
How do you pronounce dictō?
In classical Latin, [ˈdɪk.toː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈdik.to].
Where does dictō come from?
Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- → Proto-Indo-European *déyḱeti → Proto-Italic *deikō → Latin dictō.