LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective

fēstīvus

fēstīvus (feminine fēstīva, neuter fēstīvum, adverb fēstīvē or fēstīviter)
Classical[feːsˈtiː.wʊs]Ecclesiastical[fesˈtiː.vus]

Meaning

  1. adjectivelively, festive, joyous, gay, merry
  2. adjectiveagreeable, pleasing; handsome, pretty
  3. adjectivejovial, agreeable
  4. adjectivehumorous, witty, lively

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

grātiae laetitiaeque plēnus
fēstīvus -a -um — in Epistulae, ch. 11

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Lepidus · Facetus · Festivus · Salsus · Dicax · Cavillator

Lepos, facetiæ, and festivitas, denote the harmless wit, which, like humor, is only opposed to seriousness, and is the attribute of a benevolent mind; lepos (from λέπω, λεπτός,) the lightest wit, in opp. to dull gravity; festivitas (from σπαθᾶν) the more cheerful sort of wit, in opp. to gloomy seriousness; facetiæ, the jocund wit, in opp. to sober seriousness; whereas sales, dicacitas, and cavillatio, denote the more pungent wit, which is a sign of an acute intellect; sales (ἅλες) the piquant wit, in opp. to what is flat and trivial, which aims at a point, whether others may be pleasantly or painfully affected by it; dicacitas (from δακεῖν) the satirical wit, which is exercised at the cost of others, yet so that the jest is still the principal aim,—the pain inflicted, only an accidental adjunct; cavillatio, the scoffing wit, in which the mortification of others is the principal aim, the jest only a means and unimportant form. Cic. Orat. 30. Demosthenes non tam dicax fuit, quam facetus. Est autem illud acrioris ingenii, hoc majoris artis. (v. 21).

Declension

singular
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativefēstīvusfēstīvafēstīvum
genitivefēstīvīfēstīvaefēstīvī
dativefēstīvōfēstīvaefēstīvō
accusativefēstīvumfēstīvamfēstīvum
ablativefēstīvōfēstīvāfēstīvō
vocativefēstīvefēstīvafēstīvum
plural
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativefēstīvīfēstīvaefēstīva
genitivefēstīvōrumfēstīvārumfēstīvōrum
dativefēstīvīsfēstīvīsfēstīvīs
accusativefēstīvōsfēstīvāsfēstīva
ablativefēstīvīsfēstīvīsfēstīvīs
vocativefēstīvīfēstīvaefēstīva

festīvus, a, um, adj. 1. festus; lit., feast-like, belonging to a feast; hence,
I. lively, gay, festive, joyous, gladsome, merry (syn.: lepidus, urbanus, salsus, facetus).
I. Lit. (ante- and post-class.): festivum festinant diem, Enn. ap. Serv. Verg. A. 9, 401 (Trag. v. 434 ed. Vahl.): ludi, Plaut. Cas. 4, 1, 3; cf. alea, Gell. 18, 13, 1: locus, Plaut. Capt. 2, 1, 5; id. Poen. 5, 1, 9: facinus lepidum et festivum, id. ib. 1, 2, 95: hospitium in lepido loco, id. ib. 3, 3, 82; cf.: festivissimum convivium, Just. 38, 8 fin.—*
B. Subst.: festīvum, i, n., festive jollity, festivity: in vindemiarum festivo, Lampr. Heliog. 11.—
II. Transf.
A. In gen., agreeable, pleasing, handsome, pretty: luculenta atque festiva femina, Plaut. Mil. 4, 1, 12; cf. id. Ep. 5, 1, 17: nonne igitur sunt ista festiva? Cic. Par. 5, 2, 38: aedes festivissimae, Plaut. Curc. 1, 1, 93: area parvula sed festiva, Plin. Ep. 2, 17, 4: copia librorum, Cic. Att. 2, 6, 1: opera, Plaut. Mil. 2, 6, 108. —
B. In partic.
1. Of behavior, character, etc., jovial, jocose, agreeable, dear: quod te isti facilem et festivum putant, Ter. Ad. 5, 9, 29: puer, Cic. Att. 1, 12 fin.; cf.: quibus (pueris) nihil potest esse festivius, id. Fam. 6, 4, 3: filius, id. Fl. 36, 91: homo, id. Phil. 5, 5, 13; id. de Or. 2, 68, 277. —
2. As a term of endearment: o mi pater festivissime! Ter. Ad. 5, 9, 26; so, festivum caput! id. ib. 2, 3, 8.—
3. Of speech, humorous, pleasant, witty: dulcis et facetus festivique sermonis, Cic. Off. 1, 30, 108: poëma facit ita festivum, ita concinnum, ita elegans, nihil ut fieri possit argutius, id. Pis. 29, 70: oratio, id. de Or. 3, 25, 100: acroama, Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 22, § 49; Quint. 6, 3, 39.— Hence, adv., in two forms, festīve (class.) and festīvĭter (ante- and post-class.). *
1. Joyously, gayly, cheerfully: loco in festivo sumus festive accepti, Plaut. Ps. 5, 1, 9.—
2. Transf. *
a. Agreeably, pleasantly, delightfully: o domus parata pulchrae familiae festiviter! Naev. ap. Non. 510, 16. —
b. Humorously, facetiously, wittily.
(a). Form festive: agere fabellam, Cic. Q. Fr. 2, 16, 3: crimen contexere, id. Deiot. 6, 19: dissolvere argumentum, id. Div. 2, 15, 35: aliquid odorari, id. Att. 4, 14, 2: tradere elementa loquendi, id. Ac. 2, 28, 92. As a particle of assent: quare bene et praeclare quamvis nobis saepe dicatur: belle et festive nimium saepe nolo, Cic. de Or. 3, 26, 101.—
(b). Form festiviter: Epictetus severe simul ac festiviter sejunxit a vero Stoico, qui esset ἀκώλυτος, Gell. 1, 2, 7: respondere, id. 1, 22, 6.—Sup.: decorare festum festivissime, Poët. ap. Charis. 2, p. 180 P. (Rib. Fragm. Trag. Inc. 223).

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*dʰéh₁s
  3. Latinfēstīvus

Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁stosder. Proto-Italic *θēstos Proto-Italic *fēstosder. Latin fēstus Proto-Indo-European *-wós Proto-Indo-European *-iHwósder. Latin īvus Latin fēstīvus From fēstus (“of or pertaining to feasts”) + īvus.

Descendants
  • Catalanfestiu
  • Englishfestive
  • Frenchfestif
  • Italianfestivo
  • Occitanfestiu
  • Portuguesefestivo
  • Romanianfestiv
  • Spanishfestivo
  • Emilianfestîv
  • Galicianfestivo

In English words that came into English from fēstīvus

  • festivalfēstīvālis
  • festivefēstīvus
  • festivousfēstīvus

Quick answers

What does fēstīvus mean in Latin?
fēstīvus, a adjective, means “lively, festive, joyous, gay, merry; agreeable, pleasing; handsome, pretty”.
How do you pronounce fēstīvus?
In classical Latin, [feːsˈtiː.wʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [fesˈtiː.vus].
Where does fēstīvus come from?
Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- → Proto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁s → Latin fēstīvus.
Which English words come from fēstīvus?
English words that go back to Latin fēstīvus include festive, festivous and festival.