LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · masculinefifth declension

merīdiēs

merīdiēs m (genitive merīdiēī)
Classical[mɛˈriː.di.eːs]Ecclesiastical[meˈriː.di.es]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. midday, noon
  2. south
    ā septentriōne et occidente sicciōrēs quam ā merīdiē et orientefrom the North and West they [winds] are drier than from the South or East77 CE – 79 CE, Plinius Maior, Naturalis Historia 2.126.8

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

media pars diēī, cum sōl altissimus est.
merīdiēs -ēī m — in Mille Verba, Tempus et Numerī

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Meridies · Medius dies

Meridies denotes noon, as a point of time, which separates the forenoon from the afternoon; medius dies, the middle of the day, as a space of time which lies between the morning and the evening.

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativemerīdiēsmerīdiēs
genitivemerīdiēī
medīdiēī		merīdiērum
medīdiērum
dativemerīdiēī
medīdiēī		merīdiēbus
medīdiēbus
accusativemerīdiem
medīdiem		merīdiēs
ablativemerīdiē
medīdiē		merīdiēbus
medīdiēbus
vocativemerīdiēsmerīdiēs

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

spectare in (vergere ad) orientem (solem), occidentem (solem), ad meridiem, in septentriones
to lie to the east, west, south, north.

mĕrīdĭes, ēi, m. (f. ap. Amm. 26, 1, 9) [for medidies from medius-dies],
I. mid-day, noon.
I. Lit.: meridies ab eo, quod medius dies, Varr. L. L. 6, § 4 Müll.: ipsum meridiem cur non medidiem? credo, quod erat insuavius, Cic. Or. 47, 158; Quint. 1, 6, 30; Prisc. p. 551 P.: circiter meridiem, Plaut. Most. 3, 1, 52: ante meridiem, post meridiem, Cic. Tusc. 2, 3, 9: diem diffindere insiticio somno meridie, to take a nap at noon, Varr. R. R. 1, 2, 5: inclamare horam esse tertiam, itemque meridiem, Varr. L. L. 6, § 89 Müll.—
II. Transf.
A. The south: inflectens sol cursum tum ad septentriones, tum ad meridiem, Cic. N. D. 2, 19, 49: a meridie Aegyptus objacet, ab occasu Phoenices, Tac. H. 5, 6.—
B. In gen., the middle of a given time (ante- and postclass.): noctis circiter meridiem, Varr. ap. Non. 451, 9: actatis, Non. ib. 14.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*me
  2. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-?
  3. Proto-Indo-European*médʰi
  4. Proto-Indo-European*médʰyos
  5. Proto-Italic*meðios
  6. Latinmerīdiēs

Proto-Indo-European *dyew- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *dyḗws Proto-Italic *djous Latin diēs Latin medīdiēs Latin merīdiēs From a dissimilation of earlier medīdiēs, derived from medius (“middle”) + diēs (“day”). The sense of 'south' is due to the southward orientation of the sun at noon in the northern hemisphere.

Borrowings
  • Englishmeridiem
  • Englisha.m.
  • Englishp.m.
  • Italianmeridie
  • Portuguesemerídio
  • Spanishmeridiem
  • Spanishmerídiem
Balkano-Romance
  • Romanianmeriză
  • Aromanianamiridz
Italo-Romance
  • Italianmeriggiofrom Old Italian merigge
  • Sicilianmariciu

In English words that came into English from merīdiēs

  • meridianmerīdiānum
  • meridionalmerīdiōnālis
  • meridiemmerīdiem
  • pomeridianpomeridianus

Quick answers

What does merīdiēs mean in Latin?
merīdiēs, a noun, means “midday, noon; south”.
What is the genitive of merīdiēs?
The genitive singular is merīdiēī. merīdiēs is masculine, fifth declension.
How do you pronounce merīdiēs?
In classical Latin, [mɛˈriː.di.eːs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [meˈriː.di.es].
Where does merīdiēs come from?
Proto-Indo-European *me → Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-? → Proto-Indo-European *médʰi → Proto-Indo-European *médʰyos → Proto-Italic *meðios → Latin merīdiēs.
Which English words come from merīdiēs?
English words that go back to Latin merīdiēs include meridiem, meridian, meridional and pomeridian.