LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · masculinesecond declension

lumbus

lumbus m (genitive lumbī)
Classical[ˈɫʊm.bʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈlum.bus]

Meaning

  1. masculineloin
  2. Late Latinmasculinelumbar
  3. in pluralmasculinegenitals

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

pars corporis ā tergō, super crūra
lumbus -ī (m) — in Metamorphoses I, ch. 17

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativelumbuslumbī
genitivelumbīlumbōrum
dativelumbōlumbīs
accusativelumbumlumbōs
ablativelumbōlumbīs
vocativelumbelumbī

lumbus, i, m.,
I. a loin.
I. Lit.: At Edepol nos (velimus) tibi in lumbos linguam atque oculos in solum (decidisse), Plaut. Poen. 3, 1, 68: exporgi meliust lumbos, id. Ps. prol. 24 (1); id. Ep. Grex, 2: lumborum tenus, Cic. Arat. 82: usque ad lumbos, Quint. 11, 3, 131: nautaeque caput lumbosque saligno Fuste dolat, Hor. S. 1, 5, 22: aprugnus, Plin. 8, 57, 78, § 210; 20, 3, 8, § 14: magno premit populus agmine lumbos, Juv. 3, 244.—As food: caprigeni lumbi, Macr. S. 2, 9, 12.—Prov.: lumbis patris habere se putat digitos grossiores, said of those who regard themselves as superior to their forefathers (cf. 1 Kings, 12, 10), Hier. Ep. 82, n. 3.—
II. Transf.
A. The genital organs, Pers. 1, 20; 4, 35; Juv. 9, 59.—Hence, in eccl. Lat.: in lumbis patris, yet unborn, Vulg. Heb. 7, 10: reges de lumbis tuis egredientur, id. Gen. 35, 11. —
B. That part of a vine from which the branches spring, Col. Arbor. 3; Plin. 17, 23, 35, n. 26, § 210.

Origins

From Proto-Indo-European *lendʰ- (“to enter, penetrate, expand”), cognate with Old English lynd (“fat, grease”), lendenu (“loins”), Proto-Slavic *lędvьje (“loins”), Sanskrit रन्ध्र (rándhra, “fissure”). The expected outcome of *-ndʰ- in Latin is /-nd-/: the /b/ can be explained as a secondary development from /dw/ (as in bonus) in a form *londwo-, which De Vaan derives from the u-stem *lendʰu-. Sihler instead suggests that the /b/ can be explained by borrowing from Oscan-Umbrian. Alternatively, borrowing from Proto-Germanic *lundwuz (“loin, kidney fat”) is also a possibility.

Ibero-Romance
  • Portugueselombofrom Old Galician-Portuguese lombo
  • Spanishlomofrom Old Spanish lombo
  • Galicianlombofrom Old Galician-Portuguese lombo
  • Kabuverdianulonbufrom Old Galician-Portuguese lombo
  • Papiamentulombafrom Old Galician-Portuguese lombo
  • Asturianllombufrom Old Leonese lombo
  • Leonesellombufrom Old Leonese lombo
  • Mirandeselhombofrom Old Leonese lombo
  • Extremaduranlombufrom Old Leonese lombo
  • Extremaduranlomufrom Old Spanish lombo
Elsewhere
  • Englishloinfrom Vulgar Latin *lumbeus
  • Italianlonzafrom Vulgar Latin *lumbeus
  • Welshllwynfrom Vulgar Latin *lumbeus
Italo-Romance
  • Italianlombo
Gallo-Romance
  • Catalanllom
Borrowings
  • Frenchlombes

In English words that came into English from lumbus

  • loin*lumbea
  • lumbagolumbāgō
  • lumbarlumbāris
  • elumbatedēlumbis
  • numbleslumbulus

Quick answers

What does lumbus mean in Latin?
lumbus, a noun, means “loin; lumbar; genitals”.
What is the genitive of lumbus?
The genitive singular is lumbī. lumbus is masculine, second declension.
How do you pronounce lumbus?
In classical Latin, [ˈɫʊm.bʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈlum.bus].
Which English words come from lumbus?
English words that go back to Latin lumbus include loin, lumbago, lumbar, elumbated and numbles.