LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective (nominative masculine singular in -er)

sēmifer

sēmifer (feminine sēmifera, neuter sēmiferum)
Classical[ˈseː.mɪ.fɛr]Ecclesiastical[ˈsɛː.mi.fer]

Meaning

  1. adjectivehalf-beast, such as of a centaur, satyr or Sphinx
  2. adjectivehalf-wild, half-savage

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

dīmidium homō, dīmidium fera
sēmifer -erī (m) — in Aeneis, ch. 19

Declension

singular
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativein -er
sēmifer		sēmiferasēmiferum
genitivesēmiferīsēmiferaesēmiferī
dativesēmiferōsēmiferaesēmiferō
accusativesēmiferumsēmiferamsēmiferum
ablativesēmiferōsēmiferāsēmiferō
vocativesēmifersēmiferasēmiferum
plural
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativesēmiferīsēmiferaesēmifera
genitivesēmiferōrumsēmiferārumsēmiferōrum
dativesēmiferīssēmiferīssēmiferīs
accusativesēmiferōssēmiferāssēmifera
ablativesēmiferīssēmiferīssēmiferīs
vocativesēmiferīsēmiferaesēmifera

sēmĭ-fer, fĕra, fĕrum, adj. ferus,
I. halfbestial, half man and half beast.
I. Lit.: semifer interea divinae stirpis alumno Laetus erat, i. e. the Centaur Chiron, Ov. M. 2, 633; so of the Centaurs, id. ib. 12, 406; Stat. Th. 9, 220; Luc. 6, 386: caput Panis, Lucr. 4, 587: pectus (Tritonis), Verg. A. 10, 212: corpus Capricorni (because half goat and half fish), Cic. Arat. 59 Orell. N. cr.: species hominum (with portenta), Lucr. 2, 702 et saep.—
II. Trop., half-wild, half-savage: (Cacus), Verg. A. 8, 267 (for which, semihomo, id. ib. 194): glires semiferum animal, Plin. 8, 57, 82, § 224: proles (canis), Grat. Cyn. 253: genus hominum, Plin. 6, 19, 22, § 66; Sil. 3, 542.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sem-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*sēmi
  3. Latinsēmifer

Latin ferus Latin sēmifer From sēmi- (“half”) + ferus (“wild, untamed”).

Quick answers

What does sēmifer mean in Latin?
sēmifer, a adjective, means “half-beast, such as of a centaur, satyr or Sphinx; half-wild, half-savage”.
How do you pronounce sēmifer?
In classical Latin, [ˈseː.mɪ.fɛr]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈsɛː.mi.fer].
Where does sēmifer come from?
Proto-Indo-European *sem- → Proto-Indo-European *sēmi → Latin sēmifer.