LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · masculinesecond declension

lacertus

lacertus m (genitive lacertī)
Classical[ɫaˈkɛr.tʊs]Ecclesiastical[laˈt͡ʃɛr.tus]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. masculineThe muscular part of the upper arm, including the shoulder, biceps, and triceps.
  2. masculineThe arm.
    Quae enim vōx potest esse contemptior quam Milōnis Crotōniātae? Quī cum iam senex esset āthlētāsque sē exercentēs in curriculō vidēret, aspexisse lacertōs suōs dīcitur inlacrimānsque dīxisse: “At hī quidem mortuī iam sunt.”For what remark could be more contemptible than that of Milo of Croton? When he was already an old man and saw athletes training on the track, he is said to have looked at his own arms and said through his tears: “But these, indeed, are already dead.”106 BCE – 43 BCE, Cicero, Cato Maior De Senectute 27
  3. Late LatinmasculineA muscle.

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

pars bracchiī superior; lacertī virī fortis magnī sunt.
lacertus -ī m — in Mille Verba, Aula Rēgia

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Ulna · Lacertus · Brachium · Cubitus

Ulna (ὠλένη) is the whole arm, from the shoulder to the hand, which serves as a measure, an ell; lacertus (ἀλκή) the upper arm; brachium (βράγχιον, βραχίων), the under-arm; cubitus, the bending between the two, the elbow. (vi. 383.)

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativelacertuslacertī
genitivelacertīlacertōrum
dativelacertōlacertīs
accusativelacertumlacertōs
ablativelacertōlacertīs
vocativelacertelacertī

lăcertus, i, m.,
I. the muscular part of the arm, from the shoulder to the elbow, the upper arm.
I. Lit., opp. bracchium, the forearm, Lucr. 4, 829; cf.: laudat digitosque manusque, Bracchiaque et nudos mediā plus parte lacertos, Ov. M. 1, 501; and: subjecta lacertis brachia sunt, id. ib. 14, 304; cf. also Quint. 8 prooem. 19: brachia quoque et lacertos auro colunt, Curt. 8, 9, 21.—
II. Transf.
A. The arm (esp. as brawny, muscular): nam scutum gladium galeam in onere nostri milites non plus numerant quam umeros, lacertos, manus, Cic. Tusc. 2, 16, 37: Milo Crotoniates nobilitatus ex lateribus et lacertis suis, Cic. de Sen. 9, 27: excusso lacerto telum torquere, Sen. Ben. 2, 6; Prop. 2, 18 (3, 15), 37: lacertos collo imponere, Ov. H. 16, 219: lacerto jaculari, id. Am. 3, 12, 27: amplecti, id. ib. 3, 8, 11: candida cingantur colla lacertis, id. A. A. 2, 457: laevus, Verg. A. 11, 693; Hor. S. 1, 6, 74: adducto contortum hastile lacerto immittit, Verg. A. 11, 561: secto requiem sperare lacerto, Juv. 6, 106. —Of bees: spicula exacuunt rostris, aptantque lacertos, i. e. make trial of, Verg. G. 4, 74.—
B. Transf.
1. A blow or cast from a strong arm, Sil. 16, 562; 1, 262.—
2. Trop., muscular power, muscle, strength, military force: in Lysia saepe sunt lacerti, sic ut fieri nihil possit valentius, Cic. Brut. 16, 64: hastas oratoris lacertis viribusque torquere, id. de Or. 1, 57, 242: me civilis tulit aestus in arma, Caesaris Augusti non responsura lacertis, Hor. Ep. 2, 2, 48; Flor. prooem. § 8: viribus confisus admirandisque lacertis, Juv. 10, 11.
lăcertus, i,
I. a lizard; a sea-fish; v. lacerta.

Origins

Uncertain. Possibly from lacerta (“lizard”), as musculus derived from a supposed resemblance to little mice; possibly from Proto-Indo-European *Hlak-, *lēk- (“leg, q.v.”)

In English words that came into English from lacertus

  • lizardlacertus

Quick answers

What does lacertus mean in Latin?
lacertus, a noun, means “The muscular part of the upper arm, including the shoulder, biceps, and triceps.; The arm.; A muscle.”.
What is the genitive of lacertus?
The genitive singular is lacertī. lacertus is masculine, second declension.
How do you pronounce lacertus?
In classical Latin, [ɫaˈkɛr.tʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [laˈt͡ʃɛr.tus].