LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
conjunction

necne

necne
Classical[ˈnɛk.nɛ]Ecclesiastical[ˈnɛk.ne]

Meaning

  1. or not
  2. whether
    Nihil interest valeam necne.It matters not whether I am well or not.

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

necnĕ, adv. neque-ne,
I. or not, is used in the second half of a disjunctive interrogation, corresponding to -ne or utrum, and also without a corresp interrog, particle in the first half (usually in indirect interrogations, and without repeating the verb).
I. In indirect interrogations.
A. Without a verb: quaero, potueritne Roscius ex societate partem suam petere necne, Cic. Rosc. Com. 17, 52: jam dudum ego erro, qui quaeram, utrum emeris necne, Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 16, § 35: utrum proelium committi ex usu esset necne, Caes. B. G. 1, 50: nunc habeam necne, incertum est, Ter. Heaut. 1, 1, 43: posset agi lege necne pauci quondam sciebant, Cic. Mur. 11, 25: accipiat enim actionem necne ad eventum pertinet, Quint. 3, 6, 73; cf. id. 1, 4, 21; and Spald. on 7, 3, 30: idcirco quidam, comoedia necne poëma Esset, quaesivere, Hor. S. 1, 4, 45.—
B. With a verb: Aristo dubitat omnino, deus animans necne sit, Cic. N. D. 1, 14, 37: hoc doce doleam necne doleam nihil interesse, id. Tusc. 2, 12, 29: fiat necne fiat, id quaeritur, id. Div. 1, 39, 86: quaeritur sintne di necne sint, id. N. D. 1, 22, 61: di utrum sint necne sint, quaeritur, id. ib. 3, 7, 17.—
II. In a direct interrogation (rare): sunt haec tua verba necne? Cic. Tusc. 3, 18, 41.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*né
  2. Proto-Indo-European*nékʷe
  3. Proto-Italic*nekʷe
  4. Latinnecne

Latin nec Latin -ne Latin necne From nec + -ne.

Quick answers

What does necne mean in Latin?
necne, a conjunction, means “or not; whether”.
How do you pronounce necne?
In classical Latin, [ˈnɛk.nɛ]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈnɛk.ne].
Where does necne come from?
Proto-Indo-European *né → Proto-Indo-European *nékʷe → Proto-Italic *nekʷe → Latin necne.