LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective

paucus

paucus (feminine pauca, neuter paucum, comparative paucior, superlative paucissimus)
Classical[ˈpau̯.kʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈpaːu̯.kus]

Meaning

  1. adjectivefew, little
    Paucorum inde dierum quiete sumpta et uixdum satis percurato uolnere, ad Victumulas oppugnandas ire pergit.1905 translation by Canon William Masfen Roberts After taking only a few days' rest, before his wound was thoroughly healed Hannibal proceeded to attack Victumviae.27 BCE – 25 BCE, Titus Livius, Ab urbe condita 21.57.9

Declension

singular
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativepaucus
pauculus		pauca
paucula		paucum
pauculum
genitivepaucī
pauculī		paucae
pauculae		paucī
pauculī
dativepaucō
pauculō		paucae
pauculae		paucō
pauculō
accusativepaucum
pauculum		paucam
pauculam		paucum
pauculum
ablativepaucō
pauculō		paucā
pauculā		paucō
pauculō
vocativepauce
paucule		pauca
paucula		paucum
pauculum
plural
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativepaucī
pauculī		paucae
pauculae		pauca
paucula
genitivepaucōrum
pauculōrum		paucārum
pauculārum		paucōrum
pauculōrum
dativepaucīs
pauculīs		paucīs
pauculīs		paucīs
pauculīs
accusativepaucōs
pauculōs		paucās
pauculās		pauca
paucula
ablativepaucīs
pauculīs		paucīs
pauculīs		paucīs
pauculīs
vocativepaucī
pauculī		paucae
pauculae		pauca
paucula

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

pauca dicere (pauca verba dicere only of the orator)
to say only a few words.
multa (pauca) puncta in centuria (tribu) aliqua ferre
to obtain many (few) votes in a century or tribe.
ex infinita exemplorum copia unum (pauca) sumere, decerpere (eligere)
to choose one from a large number of instances.

paucus, a, um (
I. gen. plur. paucūm, Enn. ap. Gell. 12, 4, fin.—Dat. plur. fem. paucabus, Cn. Gellius ap. Charis. p. 39 P.), adj. root pau-; Gr. παύω, to cause to cease, παῦλα, remnant, παῦρος, little; cf. paulus, pauper, parvus (παῦρος), few, little (the sing. very rare; cf.: parvus, exiguus, rarus): verbūm Paucūm, Enn. ap. Gell. 12, 4, 4 (Ann. v. 252 Vahl.): in diebus paucis Chrysis moritur, Ter. And. 1, 1, 77: paucis diebus post mortem Africani, Cic. Lael. 1, 3; cf.: his paucis diebus, a few days ago, id. de Or. 1, 37, 168; id. Tusc. 5, 35, 102: causae modicae et paucae, id. de Or. 2, 32, 140: pauci admodum familiares, id. Lael. 1, 2; id. Q. Fr. 3, 1, 1; id. Fam. 2, 7, 3: paucorum hominum et mentis bene sanae (i. e. paucis hominibus familiariter utens), Hor. S. 1, 9, 44; cf. Ter. Eun. 3, 1, 19 and v. Ruhnk. ad h. l. Lycurgus γέροντας Lacedaemone appellavit, nimis is quidem paucos, XXVIII., quos, etc., Cic. Rep. 2, 28, 50: nimium fortasse pauci viverent, Lact. Ira Dei, 20, 5.— Comp ne pauciores cum pluribus manum consererent, Sall. J. 49, 2. pauciora navigia, Auct. B. Afr.—Sup.: quam paucissimae plagae, Cels. 7, 2.—
(b). In sing.: tibia tenuis simplexque foramine pauco, Hor. A. P. 203: injurias pauco aere diluere, Gell. 20, 1, 31. —
II. Subst.
A. pauci, ōrum, m., few, a few: ut metus ad omnes, poena ad paucos perveniret, Cic. Clu. 46, 128: pauci sciebant, id. Mur. 11, 25: calumnia paucorum, Sall. C. 30, 4: paucorum potentia, id. ib. 39, 1; 20, 7.—Sometimes pauci is used in the sense of the few, the select few (opp. multi, the many, the multitude): non paucis . . . ac sapientibus esse probatum, Lucil. ap. Non. 519, 10: paucorum judicium, Cic. Or. 3, 13: eorum qui pauci nominantur, id. Lael. 6, 22: pauciores, the more distinguished (opp. plures), Plaut. Trin. 1, 1, 12.—Hence, inter paucos (paucas), in paucis, adverb., with adjj., especially, eminently, extraordinarily, etc.: nobilis pugna atque inter paucas memorata, Liv. 22, 7, 1: pugna memorabilis inter paucas, id. 23, 44, 4: situs inter paucas munitae urbis, id. 38, 15, 9: Florus, inter paucos disertus, Quint. 10, 3, 13: Hector, in paucis Alexandro carus, Curt. 4, 8, 7: regi carus in paucis, id. 6, 8, 2: in paucis digna res, Plin. 30, 1, 1, § 1; 27, 7, 28, § 45.—
B. pauca, ōrum, n., a few words: philosophandum est paucis, nam omnino haut placet, Enn. ap. Gell. 5, 15, 9 (Trag. v. 417 Vahl.): pauca sunt, tecum quae volo, Afran. ap. Charis. p. 214 P.: audite, pueri, pauca, Afran. ap. Non. 403, 21: in pauca confer, Plaut. Poen. 5, 4, 54: paucis me misit ad eam, id. Bacch. 4, 1, 16: paucis rem attingere, id. Truc. 4, 4, 11: ausculta paucis, Ter. And. 3, 3, 4: paucis te volo, id. ib. 1, 1, 2: paucis docebo, Verg. A. 4, 116: pauca refert, id. ib. 4, 333: pauca respondere, Hor. S. 1, 6, 61: ipsi pauca velim, Juv. 5, 107: cetera quam paucissimis absolvam, Sall. J. 17, 2.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*peh₂w-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*peh₂ukos
  3. Proto-Italic*paukos
  4. Latinpaucus

From Proto-Italic *paukos, from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂u-kos, from *peh₂w- (“few, small”) + *-kos (whence -cus). See also Old Saxon fā (“few”), Old High German fao, fō (“few, little”), Old Norse fár (“few”), Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍃 (faus, “few”) for the former element.

Occitano-Romance
  • Catalanpoc
  • Occitanpauc
Ibero-Romance
  • Portuguesepoucofrom Old Galician-Portuguese pouco
  • Spanishpoco
  • Asturianpocu
  • Mirandesepouco
  • Galicianpoucofrom Old Galician-Portuguese pouco
Insular Romance
  • Sardinianpacu
  • Sardinianpagu
⇒ Balkan Romance
  • Romanianpuțin
  • Aromanianputsãn
Italo-Romance
  • Italianpoco
  • Corsicanpocu
  • Neapolitanpoco
  • Sicilianpocu
Gallo-Romance
  • Frenchpeu
  • Franco-Provençalpou
Later borrowings
  • Englishpauce
Dalmatian
  • unknownpauc
North Italian
  • Friulianpôc
  • Istriotpuoco
  • Romanshpauc
  • Romanshpoc
  • Romanshpach
  • Venetanpuòco
  • Venetanpoco

Quick answers

What does paucus mean in Latin?
paucus, a adjective, means “few, little”.
How do you pronounce paucus?
In classical Latin, [ˈpau̯.kʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈpaːu̯.kus].
Where does paucus come from?
Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- → Proto-Indo-European *peh₂ukos → Proto-Italic *paukos → Latin paucus.