LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective

nāvus

nāvus (feminine nāva, neuter nāvum, comparative nāvior, superlative nāvissimus, adverb nāviter)
Classical[ˈnaː.wʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈnaː.vus]

Meaning

  1. adjectiveactive, busy, diligent

Declension

singular
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativenāvusnāva
gnāva		nāvum
gnāvum
genitivenāvī
gnāvī		nāvae
gnāvae		nāvī
gnāvī
dativenāvō
gnāvō		nāvae
gnāvae		nāvō
gnāvō
accusativenāvum
gnāvum		nāvam
gnāvam		nāvum
gnāvum
ablativenāvō
gnāvō		nāvā
gnāvā		nāvō
gnāvō
vocativenāve
gnāve		nāva
gnāva		nāvum
gnāvum
plural
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativenāvī
gnāvī		nāvae
gnāvae		nāva
gnāva
genitivenāvōrum
gnāvōrum		nāvārum
gnāvārum		nāvōrum
gnāvōrum
dativenāvīs
gnāvīs		nāvīs
gnāvīs		nāvīs
gnāvīs
accusativenāvōs
gnāvōs		nāvās
gnāvās		nāva
gnāva
ablativenāvīs
gnāvīs		nāvīs
gnāvīs		nāvīs
gnāvīs
vocativenāvī
gnāvī		nāvae
gnāvae		nāva
gnāva

nāvus (gnāvus), a, um, adj. Sanscr. gnā, know; Gr. γιγνώσκω; cf. Lat. notus, gnarus; for signif. cf. Germ. kennen and können,
I. busy, diligent, assiduous, active (syn.: impiger, industrius, sedulus; class.): navus repertus homo, Enn. ap. Paul. ex Fest. p. 169 Müll. (Ann. v. 183 Vahl.): homo gnavus et industrius, Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 21, § 53; id. Imp. Pomp. 7, 18: aratores, Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 51, § 120: filius, id. ib. 2, 3, 69. § 161: vir gnavus, agilis, providus, Vell. 2, 105, 2: rudimenta, Sil. 1, 549: timor, that renders industrious, id. 7, 349.—Comp.: in inquirendis gnaviores quam in componendis, Amm. 26, 4, 4: hostium naviores, Jul. Val. Res Gest. Alex. 1, 41.—Hence, adv., in two forms. *
A. nāvē (gnāvē), diligently, actively, zealously (ante-class.): nave agere oportet quod agas, non ductarier, Plaut. ap. Paul. ex Fest. p. 169 Müll.; Sall. J. 77, 3.—
B. nāvĭter (gnāvĭter; class.).
1. Diligently, actively, zealously: bene naviter ire, Sisenn. ap. Charis. p. 185 P.: naviter versari in provinciā, Gell. 15, 4, 3: pugnare, Liv. 10, 39: expedire, id. 24, 23: bellum gerere, id. 30, 4. —
2. Transf., in gen., wholly, completely: bene et naviter impudens, Cic. Fam. 5, 12, 3: plenum, Lucr. 1, 525.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*ǵneh₃-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*ǵn(e)h₃wos
  3. Proto-Italic*gnāwos
  4. Latinnāvus

Inherited from Proto-Italic *gnāwos, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵn(e)h₃wos, from *ǵneh₃- (“to know”).

Quick answers

What does nāvus mean in Latin?
nāvus, a adjective, means “active, busy, diligent”.
How do you pronounce nāvus?
In classical Latin, [ˈnaː.wʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈnaː.vus].
Where does nāvus come from?
Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- → Proto-Indo-European *ǵn(e)h₃wos → Proto-Italic *gnāwos → Latin nāvus.