dies Veneris
- noun
- /ˈdiːəs ˈvɛnərɪs/
- Archaic
- In ancient Roman calendars, dies Veneris was the name given to Friday.
Examples
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In ancient Rome, dies Veneris was dedicated to Venus.
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The phrase dies Veneris appears in many medieval manuscripts to indicate the day of the week.
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Some languages still reflect the influence of dies Veneris in their word for Friday.
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We celebrate dies Veneris as a day of rest.
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In ancient Roman calendars, dies Veneris was the name given to Friday.
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The phrase dies Veneris appears in many medieval manuscripts to indicate the day of the week.
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In ancient Rome, dies Veneris was dedicated to Venus.
Synonyms
A short form of Friday, the day before Saturday
Surface Forms
Morphology
dies + Veneris
The phrase is compositionally built: dies = 'day' and Veneris = 'of Venus', so its literal meaning 'day of Venus' (i.e. Friday) is directly derivable from the parts. However, because this is Latin and uses an inflected genitive form (Veneris) rather than an English prepositional structure, an average B1 learner may not automatically recognize the grammatical relation without some knowledge of Latin morphology, making it only partially transparent.
Etymology
Dies Veneris is a Latin name that literally means 'day of Venus' — dies is 'day' and Veneris is Venus, the Roman goddess. Because people long ago named weekdays after gods and planets, dies Veneris came to mean 'Friday', and many modern words for Friday still show that idea.