LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · femininefirst declension

noverca

noverca f (genitive novercae)
Classical[nɔˈwɛr.ka]Ecclesiastical[noˈvɛr.ka]

Meaning

  1. femininestepmother
  2. broadlyfemininea person, people, etc. who adopts the role of being a mother, especially to a foreigner.

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

uxor patris, nōn māter vēra
noverca -ae (f) — in Metamorphoses I, ch. 1, 14, 18

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativenovercanovercae
genitivenovercaenovercārum
dativenovercaenovercīs
accusativenovercamnovercās
ablativenovercānovercīs
vocativenovercanovercae

nŏverca, ae, f. for noverica, qs. νεαρική, the new one,
I. a step-mother, step-dame.
I. Lit., Afran. ap. Non. 393, 26: uxor generi, noverca filii, filiae paelex, Cic. Clu. 70, 199: cum is (Hippolytus) patri suspectus esset de novercā, id. Off. 3, 25, 94: saeviores tragicis novercas, Quint. 2, 10, 5 Spald.: injusta, Verg. E. 3, 33: saeva, id. G. 2, 128: scelerata, Ov. F. 3, 853: lurida terribiles miscent aconita novercae, id. M. 1, 147; Gai. Inst. 1, 63; 3, 14; Juv. 6, 403.—Prov.: apud novercain queri, i. e. in vain, Plaut. Ps. 1, 3, 80.—
B. Trop.: rerum ipsa natura in eo ... non parens sed noverca fuerit, si, etc., Quint. 12, 1, 2: quorum noverca est Italia, i. e. who are not natives of Italy, Vell. 2, 4, 4; so, viles operae, quorum est mea Roma noverca, Petr. poët. Sat. 122, 166.—
II. Transf.: nŏvercae, ārum, f.
1. Ditches which drain off the waler imperfectly and slowly, Agrim. ap. Goes. 119; 142; 143 al.—
2. A rough piece of land (so called in allusion to the iniquitas novercae), Hyg. Mun. Castr. § 57 Lange.

Origins

Related to novus (“new”) and cognate with Old Armenian նոր (nor, “new”).

Descendants
  • Italiannoverca
  • Aromaniannuearcã
  • Aromaniannearcã
  • Aromaniannãearcã
  • Albaniannjerkë

Quick answers

What does noverca mean in Latin?
noverca, a noun, means “stepmother; a person, people, etc. who adopts the role of being a mother, especially to a foreigner.”.
What is the genitive of noverca?
The genitive singular is novercae. noverca is feminine, first declension.
How do you pronounce noverca?
In classical Latin, [nɔˈwɛr.ka]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [noˈvɛr.ka].