LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · femininefirst declension

spongia

spongia f (genitive spongiae)
Classical[ˈspɔŋ.ɡi.a]Ecclesiastical[ˈspɔn̠ʲ.d͡ʒi.a]

Meaning

  1. femininesponge
  2. broadlyfemininepumice, or other things resembling a sponge.

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativespongiaspongiae
spongeae
genitivespongiae
spongeae		spongiārum
spongeārum
dativespongiae
spongeae		spongiīs
spongeīs
accusativespongiam
spongeam		spongiās
spongeās
ablativespongiāspongiīs
spongeīs
vocativespongiaspongiae
spongeae

spongĭa or spongĕa, ae, f., = σπογγιά.
I. Lit., a sponge, Plin. 9, 45, 69, § 148; 31, 11, 47, § 123; Lucr. 4, 618; Cic. N. D. 2, 55, 136; id. Sest. 35, 77; Varr. ap. Non. 96, 14; Mart. 12, 48, 7; 14, 144, 1; Sen. Ep. 70, 20; id. Ira, 3, 19, 3; Suet. Vesp. 16. —
II. Transf., of things resembling a sponge.
A. An open-worked coat of mail, Liv. 9, 40, 3: retiariorum, Tert. Spect. 25. —In a double sense, with the signif. I.: Ajax in spongeam incubuit, Aug. ap. Macr. S. 2, 4; cf. Suet. Aug. 85.—
B. The root of some plants; of asparagus, Col. 11, 3, 43; Plin. 19, 8, 42, § 146; Pall. Febr. 24, 8; id. Mart. 9, 11; of mint, Plin. 19, 8, 47, § 159.—
C. A kind of porous stone, pumice-stone, Vitr. 2, 6; Pall. 1, 10, 3.—
D. A kind of moss, Plin. 19, 4, 22, § 63.—
E. Fragments of iron melted, Plin. 34, 14, 41, § 146.
Spongĭa, ae, m.,
I. a proper name, perh. fictitious, in contempt, Cic. Att. 1, 16, 6.

Origins

Borrowed from Ancient Greek σπογγῐᾱ́ (spongĭā́), from Ancient Greek σπόγγος (spóngos). Doublet of fungus, both ultimately borrowed from the same substrate source.

Descendants
  • Frenchépongefrom Vulgar Latin *sponga
  • Catalanesponja
  • Italianspugna
  • Englishspongefrom Old English spunge
  • Portugueseesponjafrom Old Galician-Portuguese esponsa
  • Spanishesponjafrom Old Spanish esponza
  • Romanianspânz
  • Romanianspongie
  • Sardinianspòngia
  • Sardinianispòngia

In English words that came into English from spongia

  • spongespongia
  • spongiosespongiosus
  • spongiousspongiōsus

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

AntiquitiesSpongiaSpongia (σπόγγος), a sponge. The use of sponges has come down from very early times, for the cleansing both of the body (Hom. Il. 18.414) and of table…

Quick answers

What does spongia mean in Latin?
spongia, a noun, means “sponge; pumice, or other things resembling a sponge.”.
What is the genitive of spongia?
The genitive singular is spongiae. spongia is feminine, first declension.
How do you pronounce spongia?
In classical Latin, [ˈspɔŋ.ɡi.a]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈspɔn̠ʲ.d͡ʒi.a].
Which English words come from spongia?
English words that go back to Latin spongia include sponge, spongiose and spongious.