LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · masculinefourth declension

pōtus1

pōtus m (genitive pōtūs)
Classical[ˈpoː.tʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈpɔː.tus]

Meaning

  1. drink, draught
  2. drinking (action)

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativepōtuspōtūs
genitivepōtūspōtuum
dativepōtuīpōtibus
accusativepōtumpōtūs
ablativepōtūpōtibus
vocativepōtuspōtūs

pōtus, ūs, m. v. poto,
I. a drinking, a drink, draught.
I. Lit.
A. In gen. (class.): immoderato extumefacta potu atque pastu, Cic. Div. 1, 29, 60: medicamentum quod potui datur, Cels. 2, 13 fin.: date potui aquam, id. 3, 6: medicamentorum potus stomacho inimici, Plin. 26, 3, 8, § 17: potum exiguum equis impertiri, id. 8, 42, 65, § 162: unguenta in potus addunt, id. 13, 3, 5, § 25: olei potu, id. 8, 10, 10, § 28: cibus potusque, Just. 28, 4, 8; Plin. 8, 33, 51, § 122; 11, 37, 66, § 176; 13, 5, 10, § 51; Tac. A. 13, 16; Curt. 7, 5, 16; Plin. Ep. 3, 11, 6.—
B. In partic., drinking, tippling, toping (post-Aug.): in potu atque bilaritate, Plin. 21, 3, 9, § 12: immenso potu impleri, id. 36, 21, 42, § 156.—
II. Transf., urine (post-Aug.), Plin. 17, 9, 6, § 51.—
B. A drinking-cup (late Lat.): Fortunat, Vitr. S. Rhad. 19.—
C. A kind of drink, beverage: ad vini similitudinem, Amm. 15, 12, 4.

Origins

A noun in -tus built on the same stem as pōtus (adjective/participle).

Descendants
  • Italianpoto
  • Portuguesepoto
verbfirst/second-declension participle
pōtus2
pōtus (feminine pōta, neuter pōtum)
Classical[ˈpoː.tʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈpɔː.tus]

Meaning

  1. participledrunk, having been drunk
  2. participledrained, having been drained
    pars pede, pars etiam celerī dēcurrite cumbā, nec pudeat pōtōs inde redīre domum Some [go] by foot, some even sail down with a swift skiff; and be not ashamed – having drained [many cups] – to return home from there.(Which is to say that, with so many cups having been drained, the people have become drunk or intoxicated at the June festival of Fors Fortuna.)8 CE, Ovidius, Fasti 6.777–778

Origins

Ultimately from the root Proto-Indo-European *peh₃-. De Vaan reconstructs Proto-Italic *pōtos (“drunk”) from Proto-Indo-European *ph₃tós (“(having been) drunk; having drunk”) with replacement of expected *-a- by *-ō- under the influence of the root aorist *péh₃t. Possibly cognate with Umbrian punes, which could come from a pre-form *pō-ni-. Aside from its use as an adjective, pōtus also functions synchronically in Latin as an anomalously formed perfect passive participle of the verb pōtō (“to drink”), competing with the regularly formed pōtātus.

adjectivefirst/second-declension participle
pōtus3
pōtus (feminine pōta, neuter pōtum)
Classical[ˈpoː.tʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈpɔː.tus]

Meaning

  1. participledrunk (intoxicated)

Declension

singular
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativepōtuspōtapōtum
genitivepōtīpōtaepōtī
dativepōtōpōtaepōtō
accusativepōtumpōtampōtum
ablativepōtōpōtāpōtō
vocativepōtepōtapōtum
plural
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativepōtīpōtaepōta
genitivepōtōrumpōtārumpōtōrum
dativepōtīspōtīspōtīs
accusativepōtōspōtāspōta
ablativepōtīspōtīspōtīs
vocativepōtīpōtaepōta

pōtus, a, um, P. a., from poto.

Origins

Ultimately from the root Proto-Indo-European *peh₃-. De Vaan reconstructs Proto-Italic *pōtos (“drunk”) from Proto-Indo-European *ph₃tós (“(having been) drunk; having drunk”) with replacement of expected *-a- by *-ō- under the influence of the root aorist *péh₃t. Possibly cognate with Umbrian punes, which could come from a pre-form *pō-ni-. Aside from its use as an adjective, pōtus also functions synchronically in Latin as an anomalously formed perfect passive participle of the verb pōtō (“to drink”), competing with the regularly formed pōtātus.

Quick answers

What does pōtus mean in Latin?
pōtus, a noun, means “drink, draught; drinking (action)”.
What is the genitive of pōtus?
The genitive singular is pōtūs. pōtus is masculine, fourth declension.
How do you pronounce pōtus?
In classical Latin, [ˈpoː.tʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈpɔː.tus].