Deponent (classical languages)
Revision as of 13:25, 3 July 2007 by Linguipedia (talk | contribs) (New page: In Latin and Greek linguistics, a '''deponent''' is a verb with middle or passive inflection, but ordinary ("active") meaning. ===Examples=== Latin ''loquor'' 'I speak', Clasical Greek '...)
In Latin and Greek linguistics, a deponent is a verb with middle or passive inflection, but ordinary ("active") meaning.
Examples
Latin loquor 'I speak', Clasical Greek érkhomai 'I come'.
Polysemy
The term deponent has been generalized, to refer to any situation where a morphological marker has the "wrong" function; see deponency.
Origin
According to the OED, deponent is first attested in English in 1528. Latin deponens means 'laying down', the idea being that deponents have laid aside their passive meaning, or their active forms.
Other languages
German Deponens
