词源 |
sesqui-word-forming element meaning usually "one half more" than the indicated unit, from Latin sesqui-, sesque- "one and a half; one-half more," contraction of *semis-que- "a half in addition," from *semis "a half" (see semi-) + -que "and" (from PIE root *kwe "and, -ever," for which see ubiquity). Latin semi- had a tendency to get partly swallowed in compounds; compare these derivatives listed in de Vaan: selibra "half a libra," semodius "half a modius," sestertius "having the value of two-and-a-half" (as a noun, the name of a silver Roman coin, short for sestertius nummus), contracted from *semistertius; simbella "coin worth half a libella;" sincipitis "a half-head." updated on June 12, 2022 |