LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · femininethird declension

falx

falx f (genitive falcis)
Classical[ˈfaɫks]Ecclesiastical[ˈfalks]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. femininesickle, scythe
  2. femininea hook used to pull down walls

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

ferrum flexum quō frūmentum et herba secantur.
falx falcis f — in Mille Verba, Rūs et Agrīcultūra
ferrum bellī quod mūrum trahit et secat
hook, sickle
falx, falcis (f) — in De Bello Gallico III, ch. 6

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativefalxfalcēs
genitivefalcisfalcium
falcum
dativefalcīfalcibus
accusativefalcemfalcēs
falcīs
ablativefalcefalcibus
vocativefalxfalcēs

falx, falcis, f. perh. akin to flecto,
I. a sickle, reaping-hook, a pruning-hook, scythe.
I. Prop., Cato, R. R. 10, 3; 11, 4; Varr. R. R. 1, 22, 5; Cic. Tusc. 5, 23, 65; id. Mil. 33, 91; Verg. G. 1, 348: Ov. F. 4, 914; Hor. C. 1, 31, 9 et saep.—
II. Transf., a military implement shaped like a sickle, used in sieges to pull down walls or the enemies stationed on the walls; a hook: falces praeacutae insertae affixaeque longuriis: non absimili formā muralium falcium, Caes. B. G. 3, 14, 5; 5, 42 fin.; 7, 22; Sisenn. ap. Non. 556, 22; Curt. 4, 3, 8; Tac. H. 3, 27; Stat. Ach. 2, 419.—Of the scythes with which chariots were armed, Curt. 4, 15, 2.

Origins

Usually derived from Proto-Indo-European *dʰelg- (“to sting; needle”), whence also Proto-Celtic *delgos (“needle; pin”), Proto-Germanic *dalkaz (“pin, brooch; dagger”), Lithuanian dilgùs (“stinging, burning”), dilgėlė̃, di̇̀lgė f (“nettle”), di̇̀lgti, di̇̀lgstu (“to be stung by nettles”), dal̃gis (“scythe”). Both the -a- and the -c- are unexpected, however, which might suggest a borrowing from a neighbouring Indo-European language of Italy.

Descendants
  • Catalanfalç
  • Englishfalx
  • Italianfalce
  • Frenchfauxfrom Old French fauz
  • Occitanfalçfrom Old Occitan fals
  • Occitanfauçfrom Old Occitan fals
  • Occitanhausfrom Old Occitan fals
  • Occitanfâfrom Old Occitan fals
  • Portuguesefoicefrom Old Galician-Portuguese fouce
  • Portuguesefoucefrom Old Galician-Portuguese fouce

In English words that came into English from falx

  • falciformfalx
  • falchion*falciōnem
  • defalcatedēfalcātus
  • falcatefalcātus
  • falxfalx
  • defalcationdēfalcātiōnem
  • falcadefalx
  • falcatedfalcatus
  • falciparumfalx
  • falcigerfalx
  • falcerfalx
  • falcatafalcātus

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

AntiquitiesFalxFalx dim. FALCULA (ἅρπη, κοπίς, δρέπανον, poet. δρεπάνη, dim. δρεπάνιον), a sickle; a scythe; a pruning-knife, or pruning-hook; a bill; a falchion; a …

Quick answers

What does falx mean in Latin?
falx, a noun, means “sickle, scythe; a hook used to pull down walls”.
What is the genitive of falx?
The genitive singular is falcis. falx is feminine, third declension.
How do you pronounce falx?
In classical Latin, [ˈfaɫks]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈfalks].
Which English words come from falx?
English words that go back to Latin falx include falciform, falx, falcade, falciparum, falciger and falcer.