LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
adjectivefirst/second-declension adjective

ūnicus

ūnicus (feminine ūnica, neuter ūnicum, adverb ūnicē)
Classical[ˈuː.nɪ.kʊs]Ecclesiastical[ˈuː.ni.kus]

Meaning

  1. adjectiveonly, sole, single
    ‘quod petis, Ōleniīs’ inquam ‘mihi missus ab arvīs flōs dabit: est hortīs ūnicus ille meīs.’ “What you seek,” I say, “a flower sent to me from the Olenian fields will provide: the only one [of its kind] is in my gardens.” (A touch of the flower described by Flōra causes conception.)8 CE, Ovidius, Fasti 5.251–252
  2. adjectiveunique
  3. adjectiveuncommon

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

Choosing the right word Döderlein's Latin Synonyms

Eminens · Excellens · Præclarus · Præstans · Insignis · Singularis · Unicus

1. Eminens, excellens, præclarus, and præstans, involve a quiet acknowledgment of superiority; whereas egregius, with an expression of enthusiasm, like glorious; eximius, with an expression of admiration, like excellent. 2. Eximius, &c. relate altogether to good qualities, like superior, and can be connected with vices and faults only in irony; whereas insignis, singularis, and unicus, are indifferent, and serve as well to heighten blame as praise, like distinguished, matchless. (vi. 111.)

Declension

singular
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativeūnicusūnicaūnicum
genitiveūnicīūnicaeūnicī
dativeūnicōūnicaeūnicō
accusativeūnicumūnicamūnicum
ablativeūnicōūnicāūnicō
vocativeūniceūnicaūnicum
plural
formmasculinefeminineneuter
nominativeūnicīūnicaeūnica
genitiveūnicōrumūnicārumūnicōrum
dativeūnicīsūnicīsūnicīs
accusativeūnicōsūnicāsūnica
ablativeūnicīsūnicīsūnicīs
vocativeūnicīūnicaeūnica

ūnĭcus, a, um, adj. id.,
I. one and no more, only, sole, single (class.).
I. Lit., of number: tuus unicus gnatus, Plaut. As. 1, 1, 1: gnatus, id. Poen. prol. 68; Ter. Heaut. 1, 1, 79; 3, 2, 29: gnata, id. And. 3, 3. 8; 1, 1, 73: filius, Plaut. Poen. prol. 65; id. Cas. 2, 3, 45; Ter. Heaut. 1, 1, 41; Cic. Rosc. Am. 14, 41: quid me patrem par facere'st, quoi ille'st unicus? Plaut. Capt. 1, 2, 38 (44): filia, Ter. Phorm. 4, 3, 41; Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 41, § 104; Verg. Cir. 334; Just. 1, 4, 2: consul, Liv. 7, 25, 11: maritus, Hor. C. 3, 14, 5: vestis, Plaut. Stich. 2, 2, 26: anser erat, Ov. M. 8, 684: orbis, id. ib. 13, 853: ancillula, App. M. 1, p. 112, 6.—Strengthened by unus: qui me unum atque unicum amicum habuit, Cat. 73, 6: idque unum et prae omnibus unicum effice, App. M. 4, p. 156, 32.—By solus: quamlubet esto Unica res quaedam nativo corpore sola, Lucr. 2, 542: unica solaque res, id. 2, 1078.—
B. In partic., of abstract subjects: spes unica imperii populi Romani, L. Quinctius, Liv. 3, 26, 8: unicum doloris levamentum studia, Plin. Ep. 8, 19, 1: satis tutum praesidium, quod unicum est, Cels. 7, 33: unicum afflictae mihi solamen hoc est, Sen. Troad. 703; id. Phoen. 89.—
II. Trop., of nature, character, or quality, alone of its kind, singular, uncommon, unparalleled, unique (cf.: egregius, eminens): homo unica est natura ac singularia, Turp. ap. Non. 491, 3: quis tam ... ingenio unico? Afran. ap. Fest. s. v. sagaces, p. 321 Müll.: eximius imperator, unicus dux, Liv. 7, 12, 13; so, imperator, id. 6, 6, 17: vir unicus in omni fortunā, id. 7, 1, 9: juvenis, id. 8, 32, 13: dictator, id. 22, 14, 9: spectator caeli siderumque (Archimedes), id. 24, 34, 2: ultor Romanae ignominiae, id. 9, 15, 10: puer, Ov. M. 3, 454: volucris, id. ib. 8, 239; cf. id. ib. 12, 531: liberalitas, Cic. Quint. 12, 41: fides, Liv. 33, 21, 4: spes, Quint. 6, praef. § 2: mors, Luc. 4. 509: concordia, Liv. 3, 33, 8: exemplum, id. 1, 21, 21: nam tu poëta es prorsus ad eam rem unicus, singularly fit, Plaut. As. 4, 1, 3: tibi ille unicu'st, mihi etiam unico magis unicus, more than an orly one, more than a darling, Plaut. Capt. 1, 2, 47; id. Bacch. 3, 3, 3.—
B. Esp., in a bad sense, singularly bad, detestable (rare): unica malitia atque nequitia, Auct. Her. 3, 6, 11: scelus, Vell. 2, 7, 2: luxuria, Fest. s. v. Sardanapalus, p. 322 Müll.—Hence, adv.: ūnĭcē, alone, solely, singularly, especially, in an extraordinary degree: aliquem unice diligere, Cic. Or. 1, 1: eximie et unice delectare, Gell. 11, 13, 4: eo ornamento P.Vergilius unice est usus, Quint. 8, 3, 24: cujus amator unice Vergilius fuit, id. 9, 3, 14: quid Tiridaten terreat, unice Securus, i. e. utterly regardless, Hor. C. 1, 26, 5: mammarum vitiis aizoum unice medetur, Plin. 26, 15, 92, § 163.—In Plaut. with unus: me unice unum ex omnibus te atque illam amare aiebas mihi, Plaut. As. 1, 3, 56: immo unice unum plurimi pendit, id. Bacch. 2, 2, 29; id. Stich. 1, 1, 12; id. Truc. 1, 2, 91.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*ís?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₁óynos
  3. Proto-Italic*oinos
  4. Old Latinoinos
  5. Latinūnicus

Proto-Indo-European *-ikos Proto-Italic *-ikos Latin -icus Latin ūnicus From ūnus (“one”) + -icus (“-ic”). Compare Proto-Germanic *ainagaz and its descendants.

Descendants
  • Catalanúnic
  • Frenchunique
  • Englishuniquefrom French unique
  • Romanianunicfrom French unique
  • Italianunico
  • Portugueseúnico
  • Spanishúnico
  • Danishunikfrom French unique
  • Dutchuniekfrom French unique
  • Norwegianunikfrom French unique

Quick answers

What does ūnicus mean in Latin?
ūnicus, a adjective, means “only, sole, single; unique; uncommon”.
How do you pronounce ūnicus?
In classical Latin, [ˈuː.nɪ.kʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈuː.ni.kus].
Where does ūnicus come from?
Proto-Indo-European *ís? → Proto-Indo-European *h₁óynos → Proto-Italic *oinos → Old Latin oinos → Latin ūnicus.