LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
verbfirst conjugation, deponent

precor

precor (present infinitive precārī, perfect active precātus sum)
Classical[ˈprɛ.kɔr]Ecclesiastical[ˈprɛː.kor]
№ 492 of the 1,000 commonest wordsMille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. deponentto beseech, beg, pray, entreat, supplicate, request
    Tū coniūnx tibi fās animum temptāre precandō.[Venus replies to Juno:] “You [are Jupiter’s] wife, [and it is] right for you to ply his heart with entreaty.”29 BCE – 19 BCE, Vergilius, Aeneis 4.113
    ūtile sit faustumque, precorMay it be beneficial and fortunate, I pray8 CE, Ovidius, Fasti 3.27
  2. deponentto wish well or ill (to someone); to greet with a wish

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

deōs rogō; bona verba precor.
precor -ārī — in Mille Verba, Deī et Sacra
ōrō, ā deīs petō
precor -ārī — in Epistulae, ch. 18

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Rogare · Orare · Obsecrare · Obtestari · Precari · Supplicare

1. Rogare and orare denote simply a request as the quiet utterance of a wish; but the rogans (ὀργᾶν, ὀρέγεσθαι) feels himself al pari, on a par with the person whom he asks, and asks only a courtesy, like αἰτεῖν; the orans acknowledges the superiority of the other, and asks a benefit, like δεῖσθαι; whereas obsecrare and obtestari denote a passionate asking, as to conjure; but the obsecrans asks urgently, like λιπαρεῖν; the obtestans (from θέσσασθαι) in a suppliant manner. Cic. Att. xvi. 10. Igitur, mi Plance, rogo te atque etiam oro. Pseudocic. p. Red. 16. Pro mea vos salute non rogavit solum, verum etiam obsecravit. 2. Precari denotes the calm act of prayer, in which one raises one’s hand to heaven, like εύχεσθαι; but supplicare denotes the passionate act of supplication, in which one throws one’s self on one’s knees, or on the ground, and wrings one’s hands, like ἱκετεύειν. By hyperbole, however, precor denotes any urgent request; supplicare, any humble request, addressed to a human being. Cic. Parad. v. 3. Noctu venire domum ad eum, precari, denique supplicare. (v. 232.)

Conjugation conjugation 1 deponent

active indicative
formpresentimperfectfutureperfectpluperfectfut. perfect
1st sg.precorprecābarprecābor———
2nd sg.precāris
precāre		precābāris
precābāre		precāberis
precābere		———
3rd sg.precāturprecābāturprecābitur———
1st pl.precāmurprecābāmurprecābimur———
2nd pl.precāminīprecābāminīprecābiminī———
3rd pl.precanturprecābanturprecābuntur———
active subjunctive
active subjunctive
formpresentimperfectperfectpluperfect
1st sg.precerprecārer——
2nd sg.precēris
precēre		precārēris
precārēre		——
3rd sg.precēturprecārētur——
1st pl.precēmurprecārēmur——
2nd pl.precēminīprecārēminī——
3rd pl.precenturprecārentur——
imperative
imperative
formactivepassive
pres. 2nd sg.precāre—
pres. 2nd pl.precāminī—
fut. 2nd sg.precātor—
fut. 3rd sg.precātor—
fut. 3rd pl.precantor—
infinitives & participles
infinitives & participles
formactivepassive
present infinitiveprecārī—
perfect infinitiveprecātum esse—
future infinitiveprecātūrum esse—
present participleprecāns—
perfect participleprecātus
precāta, precātā, precātae, precātam, precātārum, precātās, precāte, precātī, precātīs, precātō, precātōrum, precātōs		—
future participleprecātūrus
precātūra, precātūrā, precātūrae, precātūram, precātūrārum, precātūrās, precātūre, precātūrī, precātūrīs, precātūrō, precātūrōrum, precātūrōs, precātūrum		precandus
precanda, precandā, precandae, precandam, precandārum, precandās, precande, precandīs, precandōrum, precandōs
gerundprecandī, precandō, precandumsupineprecātum, precātū

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

precari deum, deos
to pray to God.
precari aliquid a deo
to pray to God.
precari alicui bene (male) or omnia bona (mala), salutem
to bless (curse) a person.

prĕcor, ātus (
I. gen. plur. precantūm, Ov. M. 12, 33; Plaut. Rud. 1, 5, 2), 1, v. dep. n. and a. [root Sanscr. pracch- prask-, to ask; Germ. fragen; v. posco].
I. To ask, beg, entreat, pray, supplicate, request, invoke, call upon, beseech; to sue, say, or speak as a suppliant (class.; syn.: oro, rogo, supplico).
(a). With acc. of the person addressed: qui ne precari quidem Jovem optimum maximum possit, Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 32, § 71; id. Balb. 24, 55: deos colere, precari, venerarique, id. N. D. 1, 42, 119: quid veneramur, quid precamur deos, id. ib. 1, 44, 122; id. Cat. 2, 13, 29: deos tacite malumus et intra nos ipsos precari, Sen. Ben. 2, 1, 4: Nyctelium patrem precare, Ov. A. A. 1, 567.—
(b). With dat. of person in whose behalf: bona omnia populo Romano, Liv. 24, 16, 10: longum Augusto precare diem, Prop. 3, 9, 49 (4, 10, 50).—
(g). With pro and abl. of person prayed for: ut jure sacerdotii precari deos pro te publice possim, quos nunc precor pietate privatā, Plin. Ep. 10, 13 (8) fin.: pro necessario ac propinquo suo, Curt. 5, 3, 14: pro nobis mitte precari, Ov. M. 3, 614: pro te, Front. Ep. ad Anton. 1, 1; Aug. Ep. 175, 5.—
(d). With acc. of thing prayed for: haec precatus sum, Cic. Pis. 20, 46: hortatur pater veniam precari, Verg. A. 3, 144: tibi di, quaecunque preceris commoda dent, Hor. S. 2, 8, 75: date quae precamur, id. C. S. 3: vitam, Vell. 2, 79, 5; 2, 85, 5: saepe precor mortem, Ov. P. 1, 2, 59.—So with two acc.: quod precarer deos, Cic. Q. Fr. 1, 3, 9: ut quod deos precati eritis, Liv. 40, 46, 9: quid habeo aliud deos immortales precari, quam ut, etc., Suet. Aug. 58 fin.—(ε) With ut, ne, quominus, or (poet.) subj. alone: ut fas sit vidisse, tacitus precatur, Sen. Ep. 115, 4: deosque precetur et oret, ut, Hor. A. P. 200; Cic. Dom. 57, 144; Curt. 7, 2, 31; Liv. 24, 5, 5; 25, 25, 6; 26, 25, 13: pro se quisque precari coepere, ne festinatione periculum augeret, Curt. 3, 5, 14: precare ne jubeant, etc., Ov. A. A. 1, 568: si id non probares, quominus ambo unā necaremini non precarere, Cic. Fin. 2, 24, 79: hoc quoque, dux operis, moneas, precor, Ov. F. 4, 247: det solum miserae mite, precare, fuge, id. P. 2, 2, 68: tandem venias precamur, Hor. C. 1, 2, 30: reddas incolumem precor, id. ib. 1, 3, 7; id. Epod. 3, 20.—(ξ) With ab and abl. of person addressed: precor ab iis ut, etc., Cic. Rab. Perd. 2, 5: hoc a diis immortalibus precari, ut, etc., Nep. Timol. 5, 2: quae precatus a diis sum, ut, etc., Cic. Mur. 1, 1: ab indigno, id. Lael. 16, 57: esse stultitiam, a quibus bona precaremur, ab iis dantibus nolle sumere, id. N. D. 3, 34, 84.—(η) With acc. of the prayer: te bonas preces precor, uti sies volens propitius mihi, Cato, R. R. 139; cf. id. ib. 132, 2.—(θ) With object-clause: sibi et vicinis serere se, Plin. 18, 13, 35, § 131: numquam placidas esse precarer aquas, Ov. H. 19, 82.—(ι) With ad: di, ad quos precentur ac supplicent, make supplications, Liv. 38, 43.—(κ) Absol.: fata deūm flecti precando, Verg. A. 6, 376; so freq. in part. pres.: mitis precanti, Stat. Th. 1, 189: verba precantia, Ov. M. 7, 590: manum precantem Protendere, Verg. A. 12, 930: oliva, Stat. Th. 2, 478: eum sororem dedisse Prusiae precanti, Liv. 42, 12, 4; and parenthetically: gnatique patrisque, Alma, precor, miserere, Verg. A. 6, 117: parce, precor, Hor. C. 4, 1, 2; Ov. H. 16, 11; id. Am. 3, 9, 67: per hoc decus, precor, Hor. Epod. 5, 7.—
II. In partic., to wish well or ill to any one, to hail, salute, or address one with a wish, alicui aliquid (class.).
1. Of good wishes: sic exire e patriā, ut omnes sui cives salutem, incolumitatem, reditum precentur, Cic. Pis. 14, 33: cape, Roma, triumphum, Et longum Augusto salva precare diem, Prop. 3, 11 (4, 10), 50: nos perpetuam felicitatem reipublicae precari, Suet. Aug. 58: sibi et suis εὐθανασίαν similem precabatur, id. ib. 97: alicui immortalitatem, Curt. 8, 5, 16: permittamus vela ventis et oram solventibus bene precemur, Quint. Ep. ad Tryph. 3.—
2. Of evil wishes, imprecations; with mala, male, etc., to curse, invoke evil upon: neque, si umquam vobis mala precarer, morbum aut mortem aut cruciatum precarer, Cic. Pis. 19, 43: quod tibi evenit, ut omnes male precarentur, id. ib. 14, 33: (Ajax) mala multa precatus Atridis, Hor. S. 2, 3, 203: male precari, Plaut. Merc. 2, 1, 11: pergin' precari pessimo, id. As. 2, 4, 71; cf.: audisti quae malo principi precamur, Plin. Pan. 94, 2.—(Act. form prĕco, āre, Prisc. p. 779 P.; partic. precatus, as passive, Juvenc. 3, 85; cf. Varr. ap. Non. 480, 27.)

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*preḱ-
  2. Proto-Italic*preks
  3. Latinprecor

Latin precor From prex (“request, petition, prayer”). Cognate with Sanskrit पृच्छति (pṛcchati, “to ask”), Gothic 𐍆𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌷𐌽𐌰𐌽 (fraihnan, “to ask”), Old English freġnan, friġnan (“to ask, inquire, learn”), German fragen, Dutch vragen and Russian просить (prositʹ, “to ask, implore, request”). More at English frain.

Elsewhere
  • Catalanpregar
  • Italianprecare
  • Italianpregare
  • Occitanpreguièrafrom Medieval Latin precāria
  • Occitanpregièrafrom Medieval Latin precāria
  • Italianpreghierafrom Medieval Latin precāria
  • Catalanpregàriafrom Medieval Latin precāria
  • Portuguesepregariafrom Medieval Latin precāria
  • Occitanpregàriafrom Medieval Latin precāria
  • Spanishplegariafrom Medieval Latin precāria
Old Francoprovençal
  • Franco-Provençalpreyer

Quick answers

What does precor mean in Latin?
precor, a verb, means “to beseech, beg, pray, entreat, supplicate, request; to wish well or ill (to someone); to greet with a wish”.
What are the principal parts of precor?
precor, precārī, precātus sum (first conjugation, deponent).
How do you pronounce precor?
In classical Latin, [ˈprɛ.kɔr]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈprɛː.kor].
Where does precor come from?
Proto-Indo-European *preḱ- → Proto-Italic *preks → Latin precor.