planus

See also: plānus

Latin

Etymology 1

From Proto-Italic *plānos, from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₂-no-s (“flattened”), from *pleh₂- (“flat”).^[1] Further related to Latin palma, planta, plautus, palam, palātum, and likely pellō.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈplaː.nus/, [ˈpɫ̪äːnʊs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈpla.nus/, [ˈpläːnus]

Adjective

plānus (feminine plāna, neuter plānum, comparative planior, superlative planissimus, adverb plānē); first/second-declension adjective

1. level, flat, even

   Synonym: aequus

   Antonyms: impār, inīquus

2. intelligible, clear

Declension

First/second-declension adjective.

	singular				plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	plānus	plāna	plānum		plānī	plānae	plāna
genitive	plānī	plānae	plānī		plānōrum	plānārum	plānōrum
dative	plānō	plānae	plānō		plānīs
accusative	plānum	plānam	plānum		plānōs	plānās	plāna
ablative	plānō	plānā	plānō		plānīs
vocative	plāne	plāna	plānum		plānī	plānae	plāna

Derived terms

• explānō
• plānē
• plānitās
• plānitūdō
• plānō
• plānum

 

Descendants

• Ibero-Romance:
  • Asturian: llanu
  • Mirandese: chano
  • Old Galician-Portuguese: chão (see there for further descendants)
  • Spanish: llano (see there for further descendants)
• Insular Romance:
  • Sardinian: pranu
• Italo-Romance:
  • Italian: piano (see there for further descendants)
    • → English: piano
  • Sicilian: chianu
• Rhaeto-Romance:
  • Friulian: plan
  • Romansch: plàn, planiv
  • Venetan: piàn
• Northern Gallo-Romance:
  • French: plain
• Southern Gallo-Romance:
  • Catalan: pla
  • Occitan: plan
• Borrowings:
  • → Asturian: planu
  • → French: plan (see there for further descendants)
  • → English: plan, plain
  • → Portuguese: plano
  • → Romanian: plan
  • → Spanish: plano

Etymology 2

From Ancient Greek πλάνος (plános), itself from πλᾰνάω (planáō, “to wander”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈpla.nus/, [ˈpɫ̪änʊs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈpla.nus/, [ˈpläːnus]

Noun

planus m (genitive planī); second declension

1. a tramp, hobo, vagabond, bum
2. a cheat, impostor

Declension

Second-declension noun.

	singular	plural
nominative	planus	planī
genitive	planī	planōrum
dative	planō	planīs
accusative	planum	planōs
ablative	planō	planīs
vocative	plane	planī

References

• “planus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “planus”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• planus in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• planus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎, London: Macmillan and Co.
  • level country; plains: loca plana or simply plana
    

1. De Vaan, Michiel (2008) Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 470