noun · masculinesecond declension
magister
magister m (genitive magistrī, feminine magistra)
Classical[maˈɡɪs.tɛr]Ecclesiastical[maˈd͡ʒis.ter]
№ 933 of the 1,000 commonest wordsMille Verba core vocabulary
Meaning
- masculinemaster, chief, head, superior, director, president, leader, commander, conductor
- masculineteacher, instructor, educator of children, tutor, pedagogue
- masculinemaster; a title of the Middle Ages, given to a person in authority or to one having a license from a university to teach philosophy and the liberal arts, teacher, instructor
Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers
quī puerōs docet; discipulī eī pārent.magister -trī m — in Mille Verba, Artēs et Litterae
quī docet, praeceptormagister -trī (m) — in Evangelium secundum Marcum, ch. 4
quī docetmagister -trī (m) — in Metamorphoses I, ch. 24
teacher
magister -trī — in Viri Romae Facillimi, ch. 4, 10, 19, 22
a teacher
magister — in Seneca, ch. II
Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms
Doctor · Præceptor · Magister
Doctor means the teacher, as far as he imparts theory, with reference to the student, in opp. to the mere hearer; præceptor, as far as he leads to practice, in reference to the pupil, in opp. to the mere scholar; magister, in a general sense, with reference to his superiority and ascendency in knowledge, in opp. to the laity. Cic. Orat. iii. 15. Vetus illa doctrina eadem videtur et recte faciendi et bene dicendi magistra, neque disjuncti doctores, sed iidem erant vivendi præceptores atque dicendi. And. Mur. 31. (vi. 105).
Declension
| form | singular | plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | magister | magistrī |
| genitive | magistrī | magistrōrum |
| dative | magistrō | magistrīs |
| accusative | magistrum | magistrōs |
| ablative | magistrō | magistrīs |
| vocative | magister | magistrī |
Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book
- rhetor, dicendi magister
- a teacher of rhetoric.
- dictator dicit (legit) magistrum equitum
- a dictator appoints a magister equitum.
- disciplina alicuius uti, magistro aliquo uti
- to receive instruction from some one.
măgister, tri (old orthog., † magester, like † leber, † Menerva, for liber, Minerva, acc. to Quint. 1, 4, 17), m. a double comparative in form, from magis, and comparative ending -ter; cf.: minister, sinister,
I. a master, chief, head, superior, director, president, leader, commander, conductor, etc.:
quibus praecipua cura rerum incumbit, et qui magis quam ceteri diligentiam et sollicitudinem rebus, quibus praesunt, debent, hi magistri appellantur, Dig. 50, 16, 57. I. Lit.
A. In gen., the dictator in the earliest times was called magister populi, the chief of the people:
in Magistro populi faciendo, qui vulgo dictator appellatur ... qui primus Magister a populo creatus est, Paul. ex Fest. s. v. optima lex, p. 198 Müll.: (sapiens) rectius appellabitur rex quam Tarquinius, qui nec se nec suos regere potuit: rectius magister populi (is enim dictator est) quam Sulla, qui trium pestiferorum vitiorum, luxuriae, avaritiae, crudelitatis magister fuit, Cic. Fin. 3, 22, 75; cf. also below the passage, Varr. L. L. 5, § 82 Müll.; Cic. Leg. 3, 3, 9: dictator quidem ab eo appellatur, quia dicitur: sed in nostris libris (sc. auguralibus) vides eum magistrum populi appellari, id. Rep. 1, 40, 63 Creuz.; cf., with reference to this passage, Sen. Ep. 108, 31: Larcum moderatorem et magistrum consulibus appositum, Liv. 2, 18, 5.—Magister equitum, the chief of the cavalry, appointed by the dictator: magister equitum, quod summa potestas hujus in equites et accensos, ut est summa populi dictator, a quo is quoque magister populi appellatus, Varr. L. L. 5, § 82 Müll.: dictator magistrum equitum dicit L. Tarquitium, Liv. 3, 27; 7, 21 fin.; 23, 11: fumosi equitum magistri, in a family tree, Juv. 8, 8.—So, magister peditum (analogous to magister equitum), chief of the infantry, Amm. 21, 12, 16. —The censor is called magister morum, master of morals, Cic. Fam. 3, 13, 2: magister sacrorum, the chief priest, Liv. 39, 18 fin.; v. Drak. ad loc.; so, PVBLICVS SACRORVM (or SACERDOTVM), Inscr. Orell. 2351: FRATRVM ARVALIVM, ib. 2426: SALIORVM, ib. 2247; 2419: LARVM AVGVSTI, ib. 1661 et saep.: curiae, the overseer of a curia, Plaut. Aul. 1, 2, 29: vici, the overseer of a quarter or ward, Suet. Aug. 30: chori canentium, a head-chorister, leader of a choir, Col. 12, 2: officiorum and operarum, a superintendent, bailiff, id. 1, 18: scripturae and in scripturā, a director of a company of farmers-general, Cic. Att. 5, 15, 3; Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 70, § 169; cf.: P. Terentius operas in portu et scripturā Asiae pro magistro dedit, i. e. has performed the functions of a magister, was vice-director, id. Att. 11, 10, 1: quaesivi, qui per eos annos magistri illius societatis fuissent, Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 74, § 182: P. Rupilius, qui est magister in ea societate, id. Fam. 13, 9, 2: maximarum societatum auctor, plurimarum magister, id. Planc. 13, 32: pecoris, a chief herdsman, Varr. R. R. 2, 10; cf. Verg. G. 3, 445: elephanti, conductor, Sil. 4, 616: auctionis, the director, superintendent, conductor of an auction, Cic. Quint. 15, 50; cf.: is quem putabant magistrum fore, si bona venirent, id. Att. 1, 1, 3; 6, 1, 15; an officer charged with distributing money among the people, Plaut. Aul. 2, 2, 3.—Law t. t., an agent or assignee to dispose of a debtor's goods: praetor jubet convenire creditores, et ex eo numero magistrum creari, id est eum per quem bona veneant, Gai. Inst. 3, 79: convivii, the master or president of a feast, Varr. L. L. 5, § 122 Müll.; App. Mag. p. 336, 11: navis, the master or captain of a ship, Dig. 14, 1, 1; Gai. Inst. 4, 71; so without navis, Juv. 12, 79: gubernatores et magistri navium, Liv. 29, 25, 7; 45, 42, 3; the steersman, pilot: ipse gubernaclo rector subit, ipse magister, Verg. A. 5, 176; 1, 115; 6, 353; Val. Fl. 1, 18; 1, 382; Luc. 2, 696; Sil. 4, 719: samnitium, i. e. of the gladiators, a fencing-master, Cic. de Or. 3, 23, 86: magistri tabernae, innkeepers, Paul. Sent. 2, 8, 3.—In inscrr. are found also: fani, horreorum, collegii, memoriae, munerum, Augustalis, admissionum, epistolarum, libellorum, etc.; likewise: a bibliothecā, ab marmoribus, etc.—B. In partic.
1. A teacher, instructor, Cic. Phil. 2, 4, 8:
pueri apud magistros exercentur, id. de Or. 1, 57, 244: artium lberalium magistri, id. Inv. 1, 25, 35; cf.: virtutis magistri, id. Mur. 31, 65; id. N. D. 1, 26, 72: rarum ac memorabile magni Gutturis exemplum conducendusque magister, Juv. 2, 114.—Transf., of inanim. things: magister mihi exercitor animus nunc est, Plaut. Trin. 2, 1, 4; id. Curc. 2, 2, 8: stilus optimus dicendi effector ac magister, Cic. de Or. 1, 33, 150; Pers. prol. 10: timor, non diuturnus magister officii, Cic. Phil. 2, 36, 90.—2. An educator of children, a tutor, pedagogue:
senes me filiis relinquunt quasi magistrum, Ter. Phorm. 1, 2, 21: docendis publice juvenibus magister, Gell. 19, 9, 2. —3. A master, owner, keeper:
trepidumque magistrum In cavea magno fremitu leo tollet alumnus, Juv. 14, 246.—4. A master of his art, professor:
a tonsore magistro Pecteris, Juv. 6, 26.—II. Trop., an adviser, instigator, author of any thing (very rare):
si quis magistrum cepit ad eam rem improbum, Ter. And. 1, 2, 21: magister ad despoliandum Dianae templum, Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 21, § 54.—As adj.: rituque magistro Plurima Niliacis tradant mendacia biblis, Sedul. 1, 15.Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
magister trī, m
1 MAC-, a master, chief, head, superior, director, president, leader, commander, conductor : populi (dictator), chief of the people : dictatoris magister equitum, master of the horse : equitum cum dictatore magistri, Iu.: (censor) morum, master of morals : sacrorum, chief priest , L.: scripturae, comptrollor of revenues from farmed lands : pro magistro esse, deputy comptrollor : in eā societate, manager : pecus magistri Perfundunt, herdsmen , V.: cui magistri fiunt et domini constituuntur, trustees and guardians.—A captain, master, pilot : navium onerarium magistri, captains , Cs.: navis, H.: magistri navium, L.: spoliata magistro (navis), pilot , V.— A teacher, instructor, master : tuus: pueri apud magistros exercentur: te uti in hac re magistro: peragere dictata magistri, i. e. rules for carving , Iu.: stilus optimus dicendi magister: si usus magister est optimus.— A tutor, guardian, pedagogue : senes me filiis Relinquont quasi magistrum, T.: saevus, H.: Fingit equum docilem magister, trainer , H.—Fig., an adviser, instigator, author : ad eam rem inprobus, T.: ad despoliandum Dianae templum.
Origins
From Proto-Italic *magisteros. Equivalent to magis (“more or great”) + Proto-Indo-European *-teros. Compare minister.
Elsewhere
- Englishmagister
- Frenchmagister
- GermanMagisterfrom Old High German magister
- Italianmagister
- Englishmasterfrom Old English mæġester
- Englishmisterfrom Old English mæġester
- Portuguesemagíster
- Romanianmagistru
- Spanishmagíster
- Albanianmjeshtër
Southern Gallo-Romance
- Catalanmestrefrom Old Catalan maestre
- Occitanmèstrefrom Old Occitan maestre
- Portuguesemestrefrom Old Occitan maestre
- Spanishmaestrefrom Old Occitan maestre
- Aragonesemayestre
- Aragonesemayestro
- Galicianmestrefrom Old Occitan maestre
Northern Gallo-Romance
- Frenchmaîtrefrom Old French maistre
- Englishmasterfrom Old French maistre
- Englishmisterfrom Old French maistre
- Franco-Provençalmêtrofrom Old Francoprovençal maistre
- Franco-Provençalmaîtrofrom Old Francoprovençal maistre
- Franco-Provençalmeîtrofrom Old Francoprovençal maistre
- Bressanmaîtroufrom Old Francoprovençal maistre
- Bourguignonmoîtrefrom Old French maistre
- Gallomaîtrefrom Old French maistre
- Normanmaîtrefrom Old French maistre
Ibero-Romance
- Spanishmaesefrom Old Spanish maesse
- Spanishmaesofrom Old Spanish maesse
- Spanishmaestrofrom Old Spanish maesse
- Asturianmaestru
- Asturianmaestre
Balkan Romance
- Romanianmăiestru
- Romanianmăestru
Italo-Romance
- Italianmaestrofrom Old Italian mastro
- Corsicanmaestru
- Neapolitanmaestro
- Sicilianmastru
- Sicilianmajistru
Insular Romance
- Sardinianmaistru
Padanian
- Emilianmàsster
- Friulianmestri
- Ligurianméistro
- Piedmontesemèistr
- Cimbrianmaistrofrom Venetan maestro
Proto-Brythonic
- Bretonmestrfrom Middle Breton maestr
- Cornishmester
- Welshmeistr