LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
verbthird conjugation, third person-only in the passive

tribuō

tribuō (present infinitive tribuere, perfect active tribuī, supine tribūtum)
Classical[ˈtrɪ.bu.oː]Ecclesiastical[ˈtriː.bu.o]

Meaning

  1. transitiveto grant, bestow, assign, attribute
  2. transitiveto yield, give up, concede, allow
  3. to divide, share, distribute

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Impertire · Tribuere · Participare · Communicare

Impertire and tribuere denote giving a portion, without reference to any share, which the giver is to retain for himself; impertire means giving, as an act of free will and of goodness; tribuere, as an act of justice, or of judiciousness; whereas participare and communicare, the giving a share of something of which one also retains a share one’s self; participare has generally the receiver for its object, who is to share a possession; but communicare, generally the thing shared, in the use of which the receiver is to have a share. (iv. 158.)

Conjugation conjugation 3

active indicative
formpresentimperfectfutureperfectpluperfectfut. perfect
1st sg.tribuōtribuēbamtribuamtribuītribueramtribuerō
2nd sg.tribuistribuēbāstribuēstribuistītribuerāstribueris
3rd sg.tribuittribuēbattribuettribuittribuerattribuerit
1st pl.tribuimustribuēbāmustribuēmustribuimustribuerāmustribuerimus
2nd pl.tribuitistribuēbātistribuētistribuististribuerātistribueritis
3rd pl.tribuunttribuēbanttribuenttribuērunt
tribuēre		tribueranttribuerint
active subjunctive
active subjunctive
formpresentimperfectperfectpluperfect
1st sg.tribuamtribueremtribuerimtribuissem
2nd sg.tribuāstribuerēstribuerīstribuissēs
3rd sg.tribuattribuerettribuerittribuisset
1st pl.tribuāmustribuerēmustribuerīmustribuissēmus
2nd pl.tribuātistribuerētistribuerītistribuissētis
3rd pl.tribuanttribuerenttribuerinttribuissent
passive indicative
passive indicative
formpresentimperfectfuture
1st sg.———
2nd sg.———
3rd sg.tribuiturtribuēbāturtribuētur
1st pl.———
2nd pl.———
3rd pl.tribuunturtribuēbanturtribuentur
passive subjunctive
passive subjunctive
formpresentimperfect
1st sg.——
2nd sg.——
3rd sg.tribuāturtribuerētur
1st pl.——
2nd pl.——
3rd pl.tribuanturtribuerentur
imperative
imperative
formactivepassive
pres. 2nd sg.tribue—
pres. 2nd pl.tribuite—
fut. 2nd sg.tribuitō—
fut. 3rd sg.tribuitōtribuitor
fut. 2nd pl.tribuitōte—
fut. 3rd pl.tribuuntōtribuuntor
infinitives & participles
infinitives & participles
formactivepassive
present infinitivetribueretribuī
perfect infinitivetribuissetribūtum esse
future infinitivetribūtūrum essetribūtum īrī
present participletribuēns—
perfect participle—tribūtum
future participletribūtūrus
tribūtūra, tribūtūrā, tribūtūrae, tribūtūram, tribūtūrārum, tribūtūrās, tribūtūre, tribūtūrī, tribūtūrīs, tribūtūrō, tribūtūrōrum, tribūtūrōs, tribūtūrum		tribuendum
tribuenda, tribuendā, tribuendae, tribuendam, tribuendārum, tribuendās, tribuende, tribuendīs, tribuendōrum, tribuendōs, tribuendus
gerundtribuendī, tribuendō, tribuendumsupinetribūtum, tribūtū

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

multum alicui tribuere
to value, esteem a person.
tempus tribuere alicui rei
to devote time to anything.
honorem alicui habere, tribuere
to honour, show respect for, a person.
beneficium alicui dare, tribuere
to do any one a service or kindness.
laudem tribuere, impertire alicui
to praise, extol, commend a person.
fidem tribuere, adiungere alicui rei
to believe in, trust in a thing.
multum (aliquid) alicui rei tribuere
to consider of importance; to set much (some) store by a thing.
alicui divinos honores tribuere, habere
to pay divine honours to some one.
4 more phrases
multum communi hominum opinioni tribuere
to be always considering what people think.
civitatem alicui dare, tribuere, impertire
to present a person with the freedom of the city.
operam alicui rei tribuere, in aliquid conferre
to expend great labour on a thing.
primas (e.g. sapientiae) alicui deferre, tribuere, concedere
to give the palm, the first place (for wisdom) to some one.

trĭbŭo, ŭi, ūtum, 3, v. a. tribus,
I. to assign, impart, allot, bestow, give, etc. (syn.: do, dono, largior).
I. Lit.: ut ei plurimum tribuamus, a quo plurimum deligimur, Cic. Off. 1, 15, 47: in tribuendo suum cuique, id. ib. 1, 5, 14: si uni omnia tribuenda sint, id. Imp. Pomp. 17, 52: praemia alicui, Caes. B. C. 3, 4; 2, 21; Hirt. B. G. 8, 46: cujus sceleribus tanta praemia tribuistis, Sall. H. 1, 18, 4 Dietsch: dona nulli, Ov. M. 9, 402; Phaedr. 1, 5, 8: beneficia, Nep. Att. 11, 5: pretium aedium Aurelio, Tac. A. 1, 75: pecunias ex modo detrimenti, to deal out, allot, id. ib. 4, 64. —
II. Trop.
A. In gen., to grant, give, show, pay, render: misericordiam fortissimo viro, Cic. Mil. 34, 92; so, veniam alicui, Tac. A. 12, 40: inventoribus gratiam, Cic. Fin. 4, 5, 13: silentium orationi alicujus, id. Cael. 12, 29: quod tantum dignitatis civitati Aeduae tribuerat, Caes. B. G. 5, 7; cf.: sibi honorem, id. ib. 7, 20: mulieri honorem, Cic. de Or. 2, 11, 44: tibi turis honorem, Ov. M. 14, 128: vocabula monti, id. ib. 14, 621: salutem mihi, id. H. 15 (16), 2: parem voluntatem paribus beneficiis, Caes. B. C. 1, 35: pacem terris, Ov. Tr. 3, 1, 44; Luc. 4, 358 et saep. —
B. In partic.
1. Pregn., to grant, yield, give up, concede, allow something to a person or thing (syn. concedo): si sit quispiam, qui aliquid tribuat voluptati, Cic. Off. 1, 30, 106: valetudini aliquid, id. Tusc. 1, 49, 119: observantiam officio, non timori neque spei, Nep. Att. 6, 5: hoc matris precibus, Ov. A. A. 1, 689: aliquid rei publicae et amicitiae, Caes. B. G. 6, 1: ego tantum tibi tribuo, quantum mihi fortasse arrogo, I yield or concede as much to you, have as high an opinion of you, Cic. Fam. 4, 1, 2: cum senatus impediretur quo minus, id quod hostibus semper erat tributum, responsum equitibus Romanis redderetur, id. Planc. 14, 34; cf.: gratissimum mihi feceris, si huic commendationi meae tantum tribueris quantum cui tribuisti plurimum, id. ib. 13, 22, 2; and: nusquam tantum tribuitur aetati (quam Lacedaemone), id. Sen. 18, 63: mihi tribuebat omnia, gave me the preference in all things, deferred in every thing to me, id. Brut. 51, 190.—Absol.: cum universo ordini publicanorum semper libentissime tribuerim, Cic. Fam. 13, 9, 2: quos ne nominatim tradam, majoribus eorum tribuendum puto, Tac. A. 14, 14 fin.: tribus in generibus rerum versari rhetoris officium ... demonstrativum est, quod tribuitur in alicujus certae personae laudem aut vituperationem, Cic. Inv. 1, 5, 7. —
2. To ascribe, assign, attribute a thing to a person or thing as the cause: aliquid virtuti hostium, Caes. B. G. 7, 53: aliquid juri potius quam suae culpae, id. B. C. 3, 73: id tribuite vestrae culpae, Auct. Her. 4, 36, 48: aliquid ignaviae, Cic. Fam. 2, 16, 3: miseriae nostrae potius quam inconstantiae tribuere quod, etc., id. Att. 3, 4 init.—
3. To set store by, with magnopere, multum, etc., to make much of: quibus ille secundum fratrem plurimum tribuebat, Cic. Ac. 2, 4, 12: ne ob eam rem suae magnopere virtuti tribueret, Caes. B. G. 1, 13.—
4. To divide, distribute (syn. dispertio): rem universam in partes, Cic. Brut. 41, 152; id. Or. 4, 16: secundus (locus) in tempora tribuitur, id. Inv. 1, 55, 107: omnem vim loquendi in duas partes, id. Fin. 2, 6, 17.—
5. Of time, to bestow or spend upon, devote to a thing: comitiis omnibus perficiundis XI. dies tribuit, Caes. B. C. 3, 2: his rebus tantum temporis tribuit, id. ib. 3, 78: reliqua tempora litteris, Nep. Att. 4, 3; id. Hann. 13, 2.—Hence, trĭbūtum, i, n., a stated payment, a contribution, tribute.
A. Lit. (class.): in capita singula servorum et liberorum tributum imponebatur, Caes. B. C. 3, 32: a se intolerabilia tributa exigi, Cic. Fam. 3, 7, 3: omnes Siculi ex censu quotannis tributa conferunt, Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 53, § 131: tributa pendere, Caes. B. G. 6, 14: ceram in tributa praestare, Plin. 21, 13, 45, § 77: civitates tributis liberare, Cic. Fam. 15, 4, 2: tributo populo indicto, Liv. 4, 60, 4: imperare, id. 23, 31, 1; 23, 48, 8; Tac. A. 2, 47; 4, 71; id. G. 43; Mart. 7, 54, 8; Val. Max. 4, 3, 8; 8, 3, 3.—In the ante-class. collat. form trĭbūtus, i, m.: cum tributus exigeretur, Cato ap. Non. 229, 11: tributus cum imperatus est, Plaut. Ep. 2, 2, 43 sq.—
B. Transf.
1. A contribution made for any private purpose (jurid. Lat.), Dig. 14, 2, 2; 14, 2, 4; 14, 4, 5.—
2. A gift, present (poet.): Saturnalicium, Mart. 10, 17, 1: praestare tributa clientes cogimur, Juv. 3, 188; Stat. S. 1, 4, 86.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*tréyes
  2. Proto-Indo-European*tri-
  3. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-
  4. Proto-Indo-European*tridʰ(h₁)ús?
  5. Proto-Indo-European*tri-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*bʰuH-
  7. Proto-Indo-European*tribʰú(H)s?
  8. Proto-Italic*triðus
  9. Latintribuō

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Latin tribuō From tribus + -ō.

Descendants
  • Italiantribuire
  • Spanishtribuir
  • Englishtribute

In English words that came into English from tribuō

  • distributedistributus
  • tributetributum
  • distributiondistributio
  • retributionretribuo
  • contributecontribūtus
  • contributorcontribuō
  • attributionattributio
  • retributeretributus
  • attributorattribūtor

Quick answers

What does tribuō mean in Latin?
tribuō, a verb, means “to grant, bestow, assign, attribute; to yield, give up, concede, allow; to divide, share, distribute”.
What are the principal parts of tribuō?
tribuō, tribuere, tribuī, tribūtum (third conjugation, third person-only in the passive).
How do you pronounce tribuō?
In classical Latin, [ˈtrɪ.bu.oː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈtriː.bu.o].
Where does tribuō come from?
Proto-Indo-European *tréyes → Proto-Indo-European *tri- → Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- → Proto-Indo-European *tridʰ(h₁)ús? → Proto-Indo-European *tri- → Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- → Proto-Indo-European *tribʰú(H)s? → Proto-Italic *triðus → Latin tribuō.
Which English words come from tribuō?
English words that go back to Latin tribuō include distribute, tribute, retribution, contribute, contributor and retribute.