English → Latin
“spite” in Latin
taceōto be silent, say nothing, shut up, hold one’s tongue; to be still or at rest; to leave unsaid, keep quiet, pass over oradversusfacing, opposite; towards; against
The English word spite itself goes back to Latin speciō, through dēspectum.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
spite s.
odium occultum, tacitum: simultas obscura (a secret, suppressed dislike or enmity between two parties or persons, especially in political matters; opposed to simultas aperta; Döderlein and Herzog show that simultas alone does not express our “spite”): odium inclusum (Cic., Fam., 1, 9, 54). To cherish spite, odium occultum gerere adversus aliquem (after Plin., 8, 18, 26); occulta simultas mihi cum aliquo intercedit (after Caes., B.C., 2, 25): in spite of, by the prepositions adversus or in; adversus marking opposition and inconsistency between the two things; in expressing the existence of a state, but implying inconsistency between it and the other assertion. Something was done in spite of a treaty, a decree of the Senate, adversus inducias, senatus consultum: stultus est adversus aetatem et capitis canitiem (in spite of his age and grey hairs); sed in hac aetate utrique animi juveniles erant; tamen in tot circumstantibus malis mansit aliquam diu immota acies; or by ablative absolute with contemtus, neglectus, etc. (e.g., in spite of anybody, invito or nolente aliquo): he proceeds in spite of difficulties, licet tot difficultates obstent, objiciantur, tamen incepto suo non desistit: he retains his opinion in spite of all contrary arguments, contemtis, neglectis, omnibus adversarii rationibus, in sua perseverat sententia: you see how poor it is in spite of its fine name, qui tam tanto nomine quam sit parvus vides.
spite v.
To be spiteful [Vid: “to cherish SPITE”].
To show spite or ill-will toward anybody, odium occultum habere alicujus rei or in aliquem: to be spited by anybody, esse alicui in odio, or apud aliquem in odio.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for spite?
- The usual Latin words for “spite” are taceō, adversus. 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.