abluo

abluo

Latin

Etymology

From ab- (“from, away from”) +‎ lavō (“I wash, cleanse”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈab.lu.oː/, [ˈäbɫ̪uoː]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈab.lu.o/, [ˈäbluo]

Verb

abluō (present infinitive abluere, perfect active abluī, supine ablūtum); third conjugation, no passive

1. I wash off, wash away, cleanse, purify.
   • 8 CE, Ovid, Fasti 5.681-682:

     ‘ablue praeteritī periūria temporis,’ inquit
     ‘ablue praeteritae perfida verba diē.’

     “Wash away the false oaths of time passed,” he says, “wash away the dishonest words of the day gone by.”
     (A merchant is praying at a spring, fountain, or well dedicated to Mercury (mythology).)

2. (figuratively) I remove darkness.

Conjugation

• Passive forms of this verb are only known for the third-person.

Conjugation of abluō (third conjugation, active only)
indicative		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
active	present	abluō	abluis	abluit	abluimus	abluitis	abluunt
	imperfect	abluēbam	abluēbās	abluēbat	abluēbāmus	abluēbātis	abluēbant
	future	abluam	abluēs	abluet	abluēmus	abluētis	abluent
	perfect	abluī	abluistī	abluit	abluimus	abluistis	abluērunt, abluēre
	pluperfect	ablueram	abluerās	abluerat	abluerāmus	abluerātis	abluerant
	future perfect	abluerō	ablueris	abluerit	abluerimus	ablueritis	abluerint
subjunctive		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
active	present	abluam	abluās	abluat	abluāmus	abluātis	abluant
	imperfect	abluerem	abluerēs	ablueret	abluerēmus	abluerētis	abluerent
	perfect	abluerim	abluerīs	abluerit	abluerīmus	abluerītis	abluerint
	pluperfect	abluissem	abluissēs	abluisset	abluissēmus	abluissētis	abluissent
imperative		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
active	present	—	ablue	—	—	abluite	—
	future	—	abluitō	abluitō	—	abluitōte	abluuntō
non-finite forms		active			passive
		present	perfect	future	present	perfect	future
infinitives		abluere	abluisse	ablūtūrum esse	—	—	—
participles		abluēns	—	ablūtūrus	—	—	—
verbal nouns		gerund				supine
		genitive	dative	accusative	ablative	accusative	ablative
		abluendī	abluendō	abluendum	abluendō	ablūtum	ablūtū

Derived terms

• abluēns
• ablūtiō
• ablūtor
• ablūtus
• abluvium

Related terms

• alluō
• circumluō
• colluō
• dēluō
• dīluō
• ēluō
• interluō
• lavō
• luō
• perluō
• prōluō
• subluō

Descendants

• Catalan: abluir
• French: abluer
• Portuguese: abluir

References

• “abluo”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “abluo”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• abluo in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette

---

Portuguese

Verb

abluo

1. first-person singular present indicative of abluir