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Re: Latin question: "titillandus"

From:Christophe Grandsire <christophe.grandsire@...>
Date:Thursday, March 7, 2002, 7:23
En réponse à Raymond Brown <ray.brown@...>:

> > >The problem is that I don't know of any Latin verb *titillare. > > No need for the asterisk. The verb is well enough attested in > Classical > Latin, being used even by Cicero himself! It means "to tickle" or "to > amuse"; hence the English "to titillate". >
So the French verb "titiller" comes directly from Latin! Strange, I thought it was more an argot formation...
> > Not only in verse - 'twas not uncommon in prose of the "Silver Latin" > (i.e. > post-Augustan) period. >
I never studied that unfortunately :(( . In class we only studied texts of the end of the Republic or beginning of the Augustan period...
> > Yep - same idea as the English proverb: "Let sleeping dogs lie" (IME a > very > good idea - never had any experience with dragons, but I have no doubt > the > same applies). >
Quite more so I guess :)) .
> > But maybe your language has an equivalent phrase to: > Let sleeping dogs lie > Draco dormiens numquam titillandus > Na deffro'r ci a fo'n cysgu > > What's the equivalent proverb in French? (There must be one, I guess).
I wish I remembered. I'm wondering if we don't use the lion in French... :)) Not that there are many lions in France (though, between the zoos, reserves and circusses, we must have a few :)) ), but that's the archetype of the wild animal in France :) . Christophe. http://rainbow.conlang.free.fr Take your life as a movie: do not let anybody else play the leading role.

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Raymond Brown <ray.brown@...>