noun · neutersecond declension
officium
officium n (genitive officiī or officī)
Classical[ɔfˈfɪ.ki.ũː]Ecclesiastical[ofˈfiː.t͡ʃi.um]
№ 607 of the 1,000 commonest wordsMille Verba core vocabulary
Meaning
- neuterduty, service, office
Exsecūtiō officiī plērumque certum suae ūtilitātis proximae sacrificium implicat.
The performance of a duty usually involves a certain sacrifice of one's own immediate benefit.Atque nostrīs mīlitibus cunctantibus, māximē propter altitūdinem maris, quī decimae legiōnis aquilam ferēbat, contestātus deōs, ut ea rēs legiōnī fēlīciter ēvenīret: “Dēsilīte,” inquit, “mīlitēs, nisi vultis aquilam hostibus prōdere; ego certē meum reī pūblicae atque imperātōrī officium praestiterō!”
And while our soldiers were hesitating [to attempt coming ashore], especially due to the depth of the sea, the man who carried the eagle of the Tenth Legion, after calling upon the gods to witness that the battle might turn out favorably for the legion, exclaimed: “Jump down, fellow soldiers, unless you wish to betray your eagle to the enemy; I, certainly, shall have done my duty to the republic and my commander!”c. 52 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de bello Gallico 4.25 - figurativelyneuterobligation, an obligatory service, visit, or gesture
- neuterkindness, favor, courtesy
Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers
quod facere dēbēmus; officium cīvis.officium -ī n — in Mille Verba, Urbs et Aedificia
id quod facere dēbēsofficium -ī (n) — in IVLIANVS I: Gallia, ch. 10, 16
mūnus, quod facere dēbēmusofficium -ī (n) — in Evangelium secundum Matthaeum, ch. 3
Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms
Officium · Munus
Officium means an employment, as imposing a moral obligation, undertaken from conscientious feelings; munus, as imposing a political obligation, undertaken merely as a charge or office. Cic. Mur. 35. Hæc sunt officia necessariorum, commoda tenuiorum, munia candidatorum. (v. 352.)
Declension
| form | singular | plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | officium | officia |
| genitive | officiī officī | officiōrum |
| dative | officiō | officiīs |
| accusative | officium | officia |
| ablative | officiō | officiīs |
| vocative | officium | officia |
Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book
- officio suo fungi
- to do one's duty.
- ad officium redire
- to return to one's duties.
- ab officio discedere
- to neglect one's duty.
- de, ab officio decedere
- to neglect one's duty.
- ab officio abduci, avocari
- to let oneself be perverted from one's duty.
- contra officium est c. Inf.
- it is a breach of duty to...
- in aliquem officia conferre
- to be courteous, obliging to some one.
- aliquem in officio continere
- to keep some one in subjection.
17 more phrases
- in officio manere, permanere
- to remain in subjection.
- salvo officio (Off. 3. 1. 4)
- without violating, neglecting one's duty.
- omnes officii partes exsequi
- to fulfil one's duty in every detail.
- in officio manere (Att. 1. 3)
- to remain faithful to one's duty.
- officio suo deesse (Fam. 7. 3)
- to neglect one's duty.
- nullam officii partem deserere
- to fulfil one's duty in every detail.
- supremo officio in aliquem fungi
- to perform the last rites for a person.
- officium suum deserere, neglegere
- to neglect one's duty.
- litterae officii or humanitatis plenae
- a most courteous letter.
- diligentem esse in retinendis officiis
- to be exact, punctual in the performance of one's duty.
- aliquem officiis suis complecti, prosequi
- to be courteous, obliging to some one.
- officio suo satisfacere (Div. in Caec. 14. 47)
- to do one's duty.
- milites coercere et in officio continere (B. C. 1. 67. 4)
- to keep good discipline amongst one's men.
- multa et magna inter nos officia intercedunt (Fam. 13. 65)
- we are united by many mutual obligations.
- officium suum facere, servare, colere, tueri, exsequi, praestare
- to do one's duty.
- supremis officiis aliquem prosequi (vid sect. VI. 11., note Prosequi...)
- to perform the last offices of affection.
- aliquem ad officium (cf. sect. X. 7, note officium...) reducere (Nep. Dat. 2. 3)
- to reduce a people to their former obedience.
offĭcĭum, ii, n. for opificium, opus and facio, qs. that which one does for another,
I. a service, whether of free will or of (external or moral) necessity (class.; cf.: studium, beneficium, meritum, munus).
I. A voluntary service, a kindness, favor, courtesy, rendered to one whose claim to it is recognized;
while beneficium is a service rendered where there is no claim: officium esse filii, uxoris, earum personarum, quas necessitudo suscitat et ferre opem jubet, Sen. Ben. 3, 18, 1. A. In gen.:
altera sententia est, quae definit amicitiam paribus officiis ac voluntatibus, Cic. Lael. 16, 58: odiosum sane genus hominum officia exprobrantium, id. ib. 20, 71: nihil est vicissitudine studiorum officiorumque jucundius, id. ib. 14, 49: filicem cum officio vicini decidere, so as to do him a service, Col. 2, 14, 6: summo officio praeditus homo, exceedingly obliging, Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 51, § 135. —B. In partic.
1. A ceremonial observance, ceremony, attendance (on a festive or solemn occasion;
mostly post-Aug.): officio togae virilis interfui, Plin. Ep. 1, 9, 2: sine solenni officio, Suet. Claud. 2: per sollenne nuptiarum celeberrimo officio deductum ad se, id. Ner. 28; cf. id. Claud. 26: ad officium venire, id. Calig. 25: relicto statim novorum consulum officio, id. Caes. 50: in officio salutationis, id. Aug. 27: vitans praeter navigantium officia, id. Tib. 12: officia prosequentium, id. Caes. 71: quod supremis in matrem officiis defuisset, at the payment of the last offices, at the funeral, Tac. A. 5, 2: officium cras Primo sole mihi peragendum in valle Quirini, a ceremonial visit, Juv. 2, 133 sq.; 3, 239.—2. In mal. part., compliance, favor, Prop. 3, 15, 24; Ov. Am. 1, 10, 46; 3, 7, 24; cf.
virile, Theod. Prisc. 2, 11: puerile, Plaut. Cist. 4, 1, 5; Petr. 140.—II. In gen., an obligatory service, an obligation, duty, function, part, office (so most freq. in prose and poetry of all periods):
nulla vitae pars neque publicis neque privatis neque forensibus neque domesticis in rebus, neque si tecum agas quid, neque, si cum altero contrahas, vacare oflicio potest: in eoque et colendo sita vitae est honestas omnis et in neglegendo turpitudo, etc., Cic. Off. 1, 2, 4 sq.: perfectum officium rectum opinor vocemus, quod Graeci κατόρθωμα: hoc autem commune καθῆκον vocant, id. ib. 1, 3, 8; an id doles, quia illi suum officium non colunt, quom tu tuum facis? Plaut. Stich. 1, 1, 34; id. ib. 1, 1, 39; id. Pers. 4, 4, 66: meminisse officium suum, to remember one's duty, id. Trin. 3, 2, 71.—Also, subject., a sense of duty: si quis aegre ferat nihil in se esse virtutis, nihil officii, etc., Cic. Tusc. 4, 28, 61: quicquid in eum judicii officiique contuleris, id. Fam. 10, 1 fin.: intellegere, utrum apud eos pudor atque officium an timor valeret, Caes. B. G. 1, 40, 14: suum facere, to do one's duty, Ter. Ad. 1, 1, 44: omnibus officiis amicitiae servatis, observe all the obligations of friendship, Cic. Fam. 5, 17, 3: exsequi, id. Att. 3, 15, 4: fungi officio, id. Fam. 3, 8, 3: satisfacere officio, to perform, id. Div. in Caecil. 14, 47: officium suum deserere, to disregard one's duty, not perform it, id. Off. 1, 9, 28: discedere ab officio, id. ib. 1, 10, 32: deesse officio suo, id. Fam. 7, 3, 1: officii duxit, considered it his duty, Suet. Tib. 11.—Of animals: canes funguntur officiis luporum, act the part of, Auct. Her. 4, 34, 46.—Of things: neque pes neque mens satis suum officium facit, Ter. Eun. 4, 5, 3: officium corporis, the function or property of a body, Lucr. 1, 336 and 362.— B. In partic.
1. Lit., an official duty, a service, employment, business (class.):
toti officio maritimo M. Bibulus praepositus cuncta administrabat, naval service, Caes. B. C. 3, 5 fin.; 3, 8: celeriter equitatus ad cotidianum itineris officium revertitur, id. ib. 1, 80: confecto legationis officio, id. ib. 3, 103: destringor officio, Plin. Ep. 7, 15, 1: officium (scribae), Nep. Eum. 1, 5.—2. Transf., an office, appointment (post-Aug.).
a. Laboriosissimum et maximum, office, Plin. Pan. 91:
nova officia excogitavit, Suet. Aug. 37; cf.: novum officium instituit a voluptatibus, id. Tib. 42: obligationes, quae non propriis viribus consistunt, neque officio judicis, neque praetoris imperio neque legis potestate confirmantur, Dig. 44, 7, 27: qui ex officio pro aliis interveniunt, by virtue of their office, ib. 21, 1, 31, § 14: ministerii, Vulg. Exod. 28, 35: sacerdotum, id. Num. 7, 8.—b. Transf., in concr.
(a). The officials or attendants on a magistrate = officialium corpus (post-class.):
sub praetextu adventus officiorum vel militum, Dig. 1, 18, 6; 21, 2, 74: deponere aliquid apud officium, ib. 2, 4. 17: officia palatina, officers at the imperial court, Treb. Poll. Gall. 17, 8.—(b). An office or court of a magistrate:
ipse me Regulus convenit in praetoris officio, Plin. Ep. 1, 5, 11.Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
officium ī, n
for opificium, opus+2 FAC-, a service, kindness, favor, courtesy: pro recentibus Gallici belli officiis, help given in, Cs.: summo officio praeditus homo, exceedingly obliging: officio te certasse priorem, V.: Officiis dilecta suis, loved for her kindly services, O.—A ceremonial observance, ceremony, attendance: officium cras mihi peragendum, a ceremonial visit, Iu.: tempus per officiorum ambitum transigunt, Ta.—An obligatory service, obligation, duty, function, part, office: patris, T.: functus officio, L.: in deos hominesque fungi officiis, L.: a pueris nullo officio adsuefacti, Cs.: vita cum officio coniuncta: amicitiae: satisfacere officio, perform: officium suum deserere, neglect: de officio decedis: in officio manere, Cs.: offici neglegentior.—An official duty, service, employment, business, work: officia inter se partiuntur, Cs.: maritimum, naval service, Cs.: fama aucti officii, i. e. of extending his authority, Ta.—A sense of duty, dutifulness, conscience: quicquid in eum iudici officique contuleris: utrum apud eos officium valeret, Cs.
Origins
A contraction of opificium, an old derivative of ops, opis (“power, ability, resources”).
Descendants
- Catalanofici
- Frenchoffice
- Englishofficefrom French office
- Italianufficio
- Italianuffizio
- Portugueseofício
- Romanianoficiu
- Spanishoficio
- Albanianofiq
- Idooficofrom Esperanto ofico
In English words that came into English from officium
- officeofficium
- officialofficiālis
- officerofficiarius
- officiousofficiōsus
- officiateofficiātus
- officiantofficiāns
- inofficiousinofficiōsus