retina¹

Meaning

1. EarlyMedieval Latinfemininerein (strap or rope attached to a bridle or bit, used to control an animal)
   Apprehensaque equi Retina, celeriter eum Beneventum ducebatHaving seized the horse's rein(s), he quickly rode it to Benevento.10th century, anonymous, Chronicon Salernitanum 68 (example from DuCange)

Declension

Origins

Generally explained as a deverbal of retineō (“hold back”). Alternatively, derived from retinācula ("reins" - far more common than the singular retināculum), reinterpreted as a feminine diminutive and back-formed into retina. Attested in the Glossarium Ansileubi, which was written between 650 and 800 CE.

Meaning

1. EarlyMedieval Latinthe retina of an eye
   Et dicit Avicenna quarto de Animalibus, quod retina ducit nutrimentum secundum veritatem ad partes oculiAnd Avicenna says in his fourth book on Animals that the retina actually takes nutrients to the parts of the eye13th c., Roger Bacon, Opus maius 5.1.2.3

Declension

Origins

Ellipsis of tunica rētīna (“a net-like tunic”), referring to the fibrillar texture of the eye's retina. The phrase is attested since at least the 12th century, and this noun usage since the 13th c.

Meaning

1. femininesingulara town in Campania near Herculaneum

Declension