LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · neutersecond declension

trivium

trivium n (genitive triviī or trivī)
Classical[ˈtrɪ.wi.ũː]Ecclesiastical[ˈtriː.vi.um]

Meaning

  1. neutera crossroad, fork in the road or place where three ways meet
  2. Medieval Latinhistoricalneutertrivium (the lower division of the liberal arts in a medieval university; grammar, logic, and rhetoric)

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativetriviumtrivia
genitivetriviī
trivī		triviōrum
dativetriviōtriviīs
accusativetriviumtrivia
ablativetriviōtriviīs
vocativetriviumtrivia

Phrases from Meissner's Latin Phrase-Book

Hercules in trivio, in bivio, in compitis
Hercules at the cross-roads, between virtue and vice.

trĭvĭum, i, n. ter-via.
I. Lit., a place where three roads meet, a fork in the roads, cross-road: ut ventum est in trivium, Cic. Div. 1, 54, 123.—
II. Transf., in gen., a public square, the public street, highway; plur.: in triviis aut in compitis, Cic. Agr. 1, 3, 7: nocturnisque Hecate triviis ululata per urbes, Verg. A. 4, 609; Lucr. 4, 1203: occurram in triviis, Hor. S. 1, 9, 59; id. Ep. 1, 16, 64; 1, 17, 58; id. A. P. 245.— Sing.: pueros in trivio docere, Just. 21, 5; Tib. 1, 1, 12 (22).—Prov.: arripere maledictum ex trivio, i. e. out of the street, from the mob, Cic. Mur. 6, 13.

Origins

The noun is a neuter substantive from trivius (“having three approaches”), from tri- (“three”) + via (“road; way”).

Descendants
  • Italiantreppio
  • Italiantreppo
  • Italiantrebbio
  • Italiantrebbo
  • Englishtrivium
  • Italiantrivio
  • Ukrainianтри́віум

In English words that came into English from trivium

  • trivialtriviālis
  • triviatrivia
  • triviumtrivium

Quick answers

What does trivium mean in Latin?
trivium, a noun, means “a crossroad, fork in the road or place where three ways meet; trivium (the lower division of the liberal arts in a medieval university; grammar, logic, and rhetoric)”.
What is the genitive of trivium?
The genitive singular is triviī. trivium is neuter, second declension.
How do you pronounce trivium?
In classical Latin, [ˈtrɪ.wi.ũː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈtriː.vi.um].
Which English words come from trivium?
English words that go back to Latin trivium include trivia, trivium and trivial.