rudiment

rudiment

English

Etymology

From Old French, from Latin rudimentum (“a first attempt, a beginning”), plural rudimenta (“the elements”), from rudis (“rude”); see rude.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɹuːdɪmənt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

rudiment (plural rudiments)

1. (often in the plural) A fundamental principle or skill, especially in a field of learning.

   We'll be learning the rudiments of thermodynamics next week.

   • c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act V, scene iv]:

     This boy is forest-born, / And hath been tutored in the rudiments / Of many desperate studies.

2. (often in the plural) A form that lacks full or complex development.

   I have the rudiments of an escape plan.

   • 1671, John Milton, “(please specify the page)”, in Paradise Regain’d. A Poem. In IV Books. To which is Added, Samson Agonistes, London: […] J. M[acock] for John Starkey […], OCLC 228732398:

     But I will bring thee where thou soon shalt quit / Those rudiments, and see before thine eyes / The monarchies of the earth.

   • a. 1865, Isaac Taylor, Ornamentation of Nature

     The single leaf is the rudiment of beauty in landscape.

3. (biology) A body part that no longer has a function
4. (music) In percussion, one of a selection of basic drum patterns learned as an exercise.

Hypernyms

• (biology): vestigiality

Derived terms

• rudimental
• rudimentary

Related terms

• erudite

Translations

fundamental principle or skill

Bulgarian: начала (bg) n pl (načala) Chinese: Mandarin: 基本原理 (jīběn yuánlǐ) Czech: základ (cs) m Esperanto: bazo Finnish: alkeet (fi) pl, perusteet French: rudiment (fr) m German: Grundlage (de), Rudiment (de) n Irish: aibítir (ga) f, buntús m, uraiceacht m Japanese: 基本原理 (きほんげんり, kihon genri) Latin: rudimentum n Persian: مبادی‎ (fa) (mabâdi) Russian: осно́вы (ru) f pl (osnóvy) Spanish: rudimento (es) m

sthg. in undeveloped form

Finnish: perusajatus, peruskuvio French: rudiment (fr) m German: Ansatz (de) m Spanish: rudimento (es) m

biology: body part that has no function left

Bulgarian: рудиментарен орган m (rudimentaren organ) Dutch: rudiment (nl) n Finnish: surkastuma (fi), rudimentti (fi) French: rudiment (fr) m German: Überbleibsel (de) n Russian: рудиме́нт (ru) m (rudimént) Spanish: rudimento (es) m

music: basic drum pattern

Finnish: rudimentti (fi)

Further reading

• rudiment in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• rudiment in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911
• rudiment at OneLook Dictionary Search

Verb

rudiment (third-person singular simple present rudiments, present participle rudimenting, simple past and past participle rudimented)

1. (transitive) To ground; to settle in first principles.

Anagrams

• unmitred

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Catalan

Etymology

From Latin rudimentum.

Noun

rudiment m (plural rudiments)

1. rudiment (fundamental principle)

Related terms

• rudimentari

Further reading

• “rudiment” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “rudiment”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2023
• “rudiment” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “rudiment” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

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French

Etymology

Latin rudimentum

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

rudiment m (plural rudiments)

1. rudiment (fundamental principle)

Related terms

• rudimentaire

Further reading

• “rudiment”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

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Romanian

Etymology

From French rudiment, from Latin rudimentum.

Noun

rudiment n (plural rudimente)

1. rudiment

Declension

Declension of rudiment

	singular		plural
	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	(un) rudiment	rudimentul	(niște) rudimente	rudimentele
genitive/dative	(unui) rudiment	rudimentului	(unor) rudimente	rudimentelor
vocative	rudimentule		rudimentelor

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Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From German Rudiment, from Latin rudimentum.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /rudǐment/
• Hyphenation: ru‧di‧ment

Noun

rudìment m (Cyrillic spelling рудѝмент)

1. rudiment

Declension

Declension of rudiment

	singular	plural
nominative	rudìment	rudimenti
genitive	rudimenta	rudìmenātā
dative	rudimentu	rudimentima
accusative	rudiment	rudimente
vocative	rudimente	rudimenti
locative	rudimentu	rudimentima
instrumental	rudimentom	rudimentima

References

• “rudiment” in Hrvatski jezični portal