LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · neutersecond declension

flagellum

flagellum n (genitive flagellī)
Classical[fɫaˈɡɛl.lũː]Ecclesiastical[flaˈd͡ʒɛl.lum]

Meaning

  1. neuterwhip, lash, scourge
    […]nē lāneum latusculum manūsque mollicellās inusta turpiter tibī flagella cōnscribillent[…][…] so that your soft side and your tender hands burning lashes may not shamefully scribble on […]c. 84 BCE – 54 BCE, Catullus, Carmina 25.9–13
  2. neuterwhip for driving animals (riding horses, cattle etc.)
  3. neutertentacle
    […]utque sub aequoribus dēprēnsum pōlypus hostem[…] and how under the seas the polyp holds fast the captured enemy with tentacles dispatched from every side.8 CE, Ovidius, Metamorphoses 4.361–372
  4. neuteryoung branch, shoot
    Crās amōrum cōpulātrīx inter umbrās arborumTomorrow the binder of loves amongst the shades of trees weaves green cottages from myrtle branches.c. 4th century CE, Tiberianus, Pervigilium Veneris 5–6

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativeflagellumflagella
genitiveflagellīflagellōrum
dativeflagellōflagellīs
accusativeflagellumflagella
ablativeflagellōflagellīs
vocativeflagellumflagella

flăgellum, i, n. dim. flagrum,
I. a whip, scourge; more severe than scutica.
I. (Cf. also: flagrum, verber, lorum.) Lit.: nec scuticā dignum horribili sectere flagello, Hor. S. 1, 3, 119; cf.: ille flagellis Ad mortem caesus, id. ib. 1, 2, 41; Cic. Rab. Perd. 4, 12; Dig. 48, 19, 10; Hor. Epod. 4, 11; Cat. 25, 11; Ov. Ib. 185; Juv. 6, 479.—
B. Transf.
1. A riding-whip, Verg. A. 5, 579; Sil. 4, 441; a whip for driving cattle, Col. 2, 2, 26.—
2. The thong of a javelin, Verg. A. 7, 731.—
3. A young branch or shoot, a vine-shoot, Varr. R. R. 1, 31, 3; Verg. G. 2, 299; Cat. 62, 52; Col. 3, 6, 3 al.—
4. The arm of a polypus, Ov. M. 4, 367.—
5. In late Lat., a threshing-flail, Hier. Isa. 28.—
6. A tuft of hair, Sid. Ep. 1, 2.—
II. Trop., the lash or stings of conscience (poet.), Lucr. 3, 1019; Juv. 13, 195; cf. of the goad of love, Hor. C. 3, 26, 11.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*bʰleh₂-?
  2. Latinflagellum

Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-elós Proto-Italic *-elos Latin -lum Latin flagellum From flagrum (“scourge, whip”) + -lum.

Elsewhere
  • Catalanflagell
  • Catalanflagel
  • Englishflagellum
  • Englishflagellate
  • Frenchflagelle
  • Occitanflagèl
  • Portugueseflagelo
  • Romanianflagel
  • Spanishflagelo
  • Old Bretonflagell
Italo-Dalmatian
  • Italianfragello
  • Italianflagello
  • Dalmatianfrazial
Northern Gallo-Romance
  • Frenchfléaufrom Old French flaiel
  • Franco-Provençalflleyél
  • Franco-Provençalflél
  • Franco-Provençaleflleyél
  • Normanfléelfrom Old French flaiel
Gallo-Italic
  • Lombardfièl
  • Lombardfiaèl
Southern Gallo-Romance
  • Auvergnatflagèl
  • Gasconhlagèth
  • Gasconlagèth
  • Gasconeslagèth
  • Gasconehlagèth
  • Languedocienflagèl
  • Limousinflageu
  • Limousinflagèl
  • Limousinfleu
  • Provençalflagèu

In English words that came into English from flagellum

  • flagellumflagellum
  • flagellateflagellātus
  • flagellantflagellāns
  • flagellistflagellum
  • flagelliformflagellum
  • flagellationflagellatio

Quick answers

What does flagellum mean in Latin?
flagellum, a noun, means “whip, lash, scourge; whip for driving animals (riding horses, cattle etc.); tentacle”.
What is the genitive of flagellum?
The genitive singular is flagellī. flagellum is neuter, second declension.
How do you pronounce flagellum?
In classical Latin, [fɫaˈɡɛl.lũː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [flaˈd͡ʒɛl.lum].
Where does flagellum come from?
Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₂-? → Latin flagellum.
Which English words come from flagellum?
English words that go back to Latin flagellum include flagellum, flagellist, flagelliform, flagellate, flagellant and flagellation.