LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · femininefirst declension

sagitta1

sagitta f (genitive sagittae)
Classical[saˈɡɪt.ta]Ecclesiastical[saˈd͡ʒit.ta]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. femininean arrow, shaft, bolt
    Cōnstitit hīc, arcumque manū celerīsque sagittās corripuit, fīdus quae tēla gerēbat Achātēs. [Aeneas] halted here, and grasped in hand his bow and swift arrows, weapons which were being carried by the faithful Achates. (See: Aeneas; Achates (Aeneid).)29 BCE – 19 BCE, Vergilius, Aeneis 1.187–188
  2. femininemetonymicallythe extreme thin part of a vine branch or shoot
  3. femininemetonymicallythe arrowhead (plant of the genus Sagittaria)
  4. Late Latinfemininemetonymicallya lancet (instrument for bloodletting)

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

tēlum tenue quod arcū mittitur.
sagitta -ae f — in Mille Verba, Bellum et Arma

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativesagittasagittae
genitivesagittaesagittārum
dativesagittaesagittīs
accusativesagittamsagittās
ablativesagittāsagittīs
vocativesagittasagittae

săgitta, ae, f. root sagh-; v. sagio.
I. An arrow, shaft, bolt (freq. in prose and poetry; cf.: telum, jaculum): cum arcum mihi et pharetram et sagittas sumpsero, Plaut. Trin. 3, 2, 99: confige sagittis fures thesaurarios, id. Aul. 2, 8, 25; Cic. Ac. 2, 28, 89; id. N. D. 2, 50, 126 al.: missiles, Hor. C. 3, 6, 16: celeres, id. ib. 3, 20, 9 et saep.: sagittā Cupido cor meum transfixit, Plaut. Pers. 1, 1, 25; Lucr. 4, 1278; Tib. 2, 1, 81; Hor. C. 2, 8, 15; 1, 27, 12: sagittam conicere, Verg. A. 4, 69: nervo aptare sagittas, id. ib. 10, 131; Ov. M. 8, 380: savii sagittis per cussus est, Plaut. Trin. 2, 1, 16 (but the better reading is: ejus saviis perculsus).—
II. Meton., of things of a like form.
A. The extreme thin part of a vine-branch or shoot, Col. 3, 10, 22; 3, 17, 2; Plin. 17, 21, 35, § 156. —
B. The herb arrow-head, Plin. 21, 17, 68, § 111.—
C. In late Lat., an instrument for letting blood, a lancet, Veg. 1, 22, 4; 1, 25, 5; 1, 43, 3, etc.—
D. Sagitta, a constellation, the Arrow, Hyg. Astr. 2, 15; 3, 14; Cic. Arat. 382; Col. 11, 2, 21; Plin. 17, 18, 30, § 131; 18, 31, 74, § 309.

Origins

Unknown etymology. Probably from a pre-Latin Mediterranean language. A minority view connects it to sāgiō (“to perceive quickly or keenly”).

Later borrowings
  • Catalansagita
  • Englishsagitta
  • Italiansagitta
  • Spanishsagita
  • Esperantosago
  • TranslingualSagitta
  • Volapüksagit
Occitano-Romance
  • Catalansageta
  • Occitansageta
Ibero-Romance
  • Portuguesesetafrom Old Galician-Portuguese saeta
  • Spanishsaeta
  • Asturiansaeta
  • Galiciansetafrom Old Galician-Portuguese saeta
Balkan Romance
  • Romaniansăgeată
  • Aromaniansãdzeatã
Italo-Romance
  • Italiansaetta
  • Maltesesajjettafrom Italian saetta
  • Siciliansajitta
Gallo-Romance
  • Frenchsagettefrom Old French saete
Insular Romance
  • Sardiniansaitta
North Italian
  • Friuliansaete
  • Istriotsàita
  • Ladinsaëta
  • Ladinsaita
  • Ladinsita
  • Piedmontesesajëta
  • Romanshsajetta
  • Venetansita
  • Venetansaéta
Ancient borrowings
  • Albanianshigjetë
  • Tsakonianσογίτθα
  • Greekσαΐτα
  • Old Irishsaiget
  • Proto-Brythonic*saɣeθ

In English words that came into English from sagitta

  • sagittasagitta
  • Sagittariussagittārius
  • sagittalsagittālis
  • sagittatesagitta
  • sagittarysagittarius

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

AntiquitiesSagittaSagitta (ὁϊστός, ἰός; Herod. τόξευμα), an arrow. The account of the arrows of Hercules (Hesiod, Scut. 130-134) enumerates and describes three parts, v…
proper noun · femininefirst declension
Sagitta2
Sagitta f sg (genitive Sagittae)
Classical[saˈɡɪt.ta]Ecclesiastical[saˈd͡ʒit.ta]

Meaning

  1. femininesingularthe Arrow, Sagitta

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativeSagitta—
genitiveSagittae—
dativeSagittae—
accusativeSagittam—
ablativeSagittā—
vocativeSagitta—

Origins

From sagitta (“an arrow, shaft, bolt”).

Descendants
  • EnglishSagitta

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

AntiquitiesSagittaSagitta (ὁϊστός, ἰός; Herod. τόξευμα), an arrow. The account of the arrows of Hercules (Hesiod, Scut. 130-134) enumerates and describes three parts, v…
proper noun · masculinefirst declension
Sagitta3
Sagitta m sg (genitive Sagittae)
Classical[saˈɡɪt.ta]Ecclesiastical[saˈd͡ʒit.ta]

Meaning

  1. masculinesingularA Roman cognomen — famously held by
  2. masculinesingularOctavius Sagitta, a Roman tribune

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativeSagitta—
genitiveSagittae—
dativeSagittae—
accusativeSagittam—
ablativeSagittā—
vocativeSagitta—

Origins

From sagitta (“an arrow, shaft, bolt”).

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

AntiquitiesSagittaSagitta (ὁϊστός, ἰός; Herod. τόξευμα), an arrow. The account of the arrows of Hercules (Hesiod, Scut. 130-134) enumerates and describes three parts, v…

Quick answers

What does sagitta mean in Latin?
sagitta, a noun, means “an arrow, shaft, bolt; the extreme thin part of a vine branch or shoot; the arrowhead (plant of the genus Sagittaria)”.
What is the genitive of sagitta?
The genitive singular is sagittae. sagitta is feminine, first declension.
How do you pronounce sagitta?
In classical Latin, [saˈɡɪt.ta]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [saˈd͡ʒit.ta].
Which English words come from sagitta?
English words that go back to Latin sagitta include sagitta, sagittate, Sagittarius, sagittal and sagittary.