English → Latin
“chalk” in Latin
crēscōto rise, grow, grow up; prosper, thrive; increase, multiply, augment; to come to be; to become visible, spring from, aricrētāceuschalky, cretaceouscrētōsusrich in chalk or clay; chalky or clayeymŏnochrōmătapaintings of but one colorbrevisshort, small, little, narrow; brief, short; short, low, shallowdēscrībōto copy off or transcribe something from the original, write down, write out; to describe in painting or writing, draw, adumbrōto bring a shadow over something, cast a shadow on, shade or overshadow something, cover, screen; to represent an object
The English word chalk itself goes back to Latin calx.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
chalk
creta: like chalk, cretaceus: full of chalk, cretosus: to mark anything with chalk, creta notare aliquid: to color or rub anything with chalk, incretare aliquid: to draw anything in chalk, creta pingere aliquid (λευκογράφειν): to draw in chalks, monochromata pingere. A sketch in chalks, or chalk drawing, monochromatos pictura. Chalk drawings, monochromata, or (as a style of drawing) monochromatea genera picturae (*Plin., 35, 5, 11).
chalk v.
creta notare aliquid: incretare aliquid (to color with chalk).
Chalk out, exponere aliquid (place it clearly before the eyes): aliquid breviter describere; or definire et (breviter) describere: aliquid delineare or adumbrare (to sketch), verbis definire. (The words are found in this connection and order), definire verbis et describere; illustrare verbisque definire: to chalk out a path for one’s self, viam sibi munire (ad aliquid); *certam sibi viam definire, or habere certam et definitam viam, qua, etc. (Cic.): for anybody, alicui viam munire; aditum alicui dare of parare: to anything, ad aliquid.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for chalk?
- The usual Latin words for “chalk” are crēscō, crētāceus, crētōsus; also mŏnochrōmăta, brevis, dēscrībō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.