arcus
[ˈar.kʊs]
In Latin, the word for 'bow' is arcus.
Meaning: weapon for shooting arrows (noun)
Did you know?
- In Roman military contexts, the arcus was often seen as a weapon of the 'barbarians' rather than a traditional Roman tool of war.
- The English word 'arrow' is a distant relative of arcus, and arcus itself gave English 'arc' and 'archer'.
- While arcus describes the physical object, the act of bowing as a sign of respect in Rome was often expressed as flectere, meaning 'to bend'.
Examples in context
- Arcus sine sagittis nihil est.A bow is nothing without arrows.This sentence shows the relationship between a bow and arrows using arcus.Tatoeba #8461737 by alexmarcelo, translation #2510690 by AlanF_US
- Eritque arcus in nubibus, et videbo illum et recordabor fœderis sempiterni, quod pactum est inter Deum et omnem animam viventem universæ carnis, quæ est super terram.And the bow shall be in the clouds, and I shall see it, and shall remember the everlasting covenant, that was made between God and every living soul of all flesh which is upon the earth.This sentence describes a bow appearing in the clouds as a sign of a covenant, using arcus.Tatoeba #7958122 by carlosalberto, translation #7958126 by carlosalberto
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry arcus, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries arcus, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.