LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · masculinethird declension

passer

passer m (genitive passeris)
Classical[ˈpas.sɛr]Ecclesiastical[ˈpas.ser]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. masculinesparrow
    Passer mortuus est meae puellae. Passer, deliciae meae puellae[…]My girl's sparrow is dead. The sparrow, my girl's pet […]c. 84 BCE – 54 BCE, Catullus, Carmina 3.3–4
  2. masculineturbot

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

parva avis quae in urbibus et agrīs habitat.
passer -eris m — in Mille Verba, Animālia

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativepasserpasserēs
genitivepasserispasserum
dativepasserīpasseribus
accusativepasserempasserēs
ablativepasserepasseribus
vocativepasserpasserēs

passer, ĕris, m. for panser, from pando; cf. anser.
I. Lit., a sparrow, Cic. Fin. 2, 23, 75; cf. Plin. 10, 36, 52, § 107; 10, 38, 54, § 111; 18, 17, 45, § 158; 30, 15, 49, § 141; Cic. Div. 2, 30, 63; 1, 33, 72; Cat. 2, 1 sq.; 3, 3 sq.; Juv. 9, 54; Mart. 11, 6, 16; Juv. 6, 8; Vulg. Lev. 14. 4.—As a term of endearment: meus pullus passer, mea columba, mi lepus, Plaut. Cas. 1, 50.—
II. Transf.
A. Passer marinus. an ostrich (marinus, because brought from a distance by sea), Plaut. Pers. 2, 2, 17; Aus. Ep. 11, 7; Fest. p. 222 Müll.—In this signif. also passer alone, Inscr. Grut. 484, 6.—
B. A seafish, a turbot, Plin. 9, 20, 36, § 72; Ov. Hal. 125; Hor. S. 2, 8, 29; Col. 8, 16, 7.
Passer, ĕris, m.,
I. a Roman surname, Varr. R. R. 3, 2, 2.

Origins

Of uncertain origin. Some theories: * From Proto-Italic *passros with a declension change from second to third, from Proto-Indo-European *p(e)t-tro-s (“who flies, bird”), from *peth₂- (“to fly”). Related to penna. * From a presumed Proto-Indo-European *sparas, related to *spḗr (“sparrow”).

Elsewhere
  • Catalanpasserell
  • Catalanpàssera
  • Frenchpassereau
  • Italianpassero
  • Italianpassera
  • Occitanpasserat
  • Portuguesepássaro
  • Romanianpasăre
  • Spanishpájaro
  • Corsicanpassula
Vulgar Latin
  • unknown*passarum

Quick answers

What does passer mean in Latin?
passer, a noun, means “sparrow; turbot”.
What is the genitive of passer?
The genitive singular is passeris. passer is masculine, third declension.
How do you pronounce passer?
In classical Latin, [ˈpas.sɛr]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈpas.ser].