LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · femininefirst declension

lupa

lupa f (genitive lupae)
Classical[ˈɫʊ.pa]Ecclesiastical[ˈluː.pa]

Meaning

  1. feminineshe-wolf
    29 BCE – 19 BCE, Vergilius, Aeneis 1.275
    27 BCE – 25 BCE, Titus Livius, Ab urbe condita 1.4.6
  2. feminineslangprostitute, bitch
    c. 190 BCE, Plautus, Epidicus 3.3.22
    52 BCE, Cicero, Pro Milone 21.55

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

fēmina lupī
lupa -ae (f) — in Aeneis, ch. 19

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativelupalupae
genitivelupaelupārum
dativelupaelupīs
lupābus
accusativelupamlupās
ablativelupālupīs
lupābus
vocativelupalupae

lŭpa, ae, f. lupus,
I. a she-wolf.
I. Lit.: rabidae tradis ovile lupae, Ov. A. A. 3, 8; Liv. 1, 4, 6: ab agro rava decurrens lupa Lanuvino, Hor. C. 3, 27, 3: quem nutrit dura papilla lupae, Prop. 5, 4, 54: lupa Romuli, Quint. 2, 4, 19; 3, 7, 5.—
II. Transf.
A. A prostitute, vile woman, Plaut. Ep. 3, 3, 22: ille, qui semper secum scorta, sem per exoletos, semper lupas ducebat, Cic. Mil. 21, 55; Liv. 1, 4, 7: quibus grata est pictā lupa barbara mitrā, Juv. 3, 66; Aur. Vict. Orig. Gent. Rom. 21, 1: lupa, id est meretrix, Lact. 1, 19.—In a pun with the literal meaning, I. supra: nam ovis illius hau longe absunt a lupis, Plaut. Truc. 3, 1, 12.—
B. The name of a dog, Col. 7, 12, 13.

Origins

From lupus (“wolf”) + -a (feminine suffix). The sense “prostitute” is either a comparison of the prostitutes' predation on men to the wolf's rapacity, as also in Isidore's (often fanciful) opinion, or a reference to the she-wolf's supposed uncleanliness and promiscuity (often culturally conflated), paralleled in English bitch.

Descendants
  • Catalanlloba
  • Frenchlouve
  • Italianlupa
  • Occitanloba
  • Portugueseloba
  • Spanishloba
  • Aromanianlupã
  • Asturianlloba
  • Aragoneselupa
  • Friulianlove

Quick answers

What does lupa mean in Latin?
lupa, a noun, means “she-wolf; prostitute, bitch”.
What is the genitive of lupa?
The genitive singular is lupae. lupa is feminine, first declension.
How do you pronounce lupa?
In classical Latin, [ˈɫʊ.pa]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈluː.pa].