candelabrum

candelabrum

English

A three-armed brass candelabrum

Pair of porcelain Rococo candelabrums

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Latin candēlābrum (“candlestick”), from candēla[1]. Doublet of chandelier. Displaced native Old English candeltrēow (literally “candle tree”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /kændɪˈlɑːbɹəm/[1]
• IPA^(key): /kændɪˈleɪbɹəm/[1]
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˌkæn.dl̩ˈɑ.bɹəm/, /ˌkæn.dl̩ˈæ.bɹəm/
• Hyphenation: can‧de‧la‧brum

Noun

candelabrum (plural candelabra or candelabrums)

1. A candle holder.

Usage notes

• Candelabra is much more common as the plural of candelabrum than candelabrums.

Related terms

• chandelier
• candela
• candid
• candidate
• candle
• candlepower
• candlestick
• chandler
• chandlery

Translations

candle holder

Arabic: قِنْدِيل‎ (ar) m (qindīl), شَمْعَدَان‎ m (šamʿadān) Armenian: ճյուղավոր աշտանակ (čyułavor aštanak), ճյուղավոր մոմակալ (čyułavor momakal) Bulgarian: свещник m (sveštnik) Catalan: canelobre (ca) m; candelobre (Algherese) Chinese: Mandarin: 燭臺／烛台 (zh) or 燭台／烛台 (zh) (zhútái), 分枝燭台／分枝烛台 (fēn zhī zhútái) Czech: svícen (cs) m Dutch: kandelaar (nl) m, kaarshouder m, kaarsenstandaard (nl) m Esperanto: kandelabro (eo), kandelingo (eo) Finnish: kynttilänjalka (fi), kynttelikkö (fi), haarakynttelikkö French: candélabre (fr) m Georgian: შანდალი (šandali) German: Kandelaber (de) m Hungarian: kandeláber (hu) Ido: kandelabro (io) Irish: coinnleoir craobhach m Italian: candelabro (it) m Japanese: 枝付き燭台 (eda-tsuki shokudai) Old English: candeltrēow n Polish: kandelabr (pl) m Portuguese: candelabro (pt) m Russian: канделя́бр (ru) m (kandeljábr) Sardinian: Campidanese: candelargiu Logudorese: candelarzu, candelobre Sassarese: canderabru Serbo-Croatian: Cyrillic: свећњак m / свијећњак m, воскарница f, воштарница f Roman: svećnjak m / svijećnjak m, voskarnica (sh) f, voštarnica (sh) f Spanish: candelabro (es) m Swedish: kandelaber (sv) c Turkish: şamdan (tr), mumluk (tr) Ugaritic: 𐎎𐎐𐎗𐎚 (mnrt)

References

1. “candelabrum”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

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Latin

Alternative forms

• candēlāber
• candēlābrus

Etymology

From candēla (“candle”) +‎ -brum.

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /kan.deːˈlaː.brum/, [kän̪d̪eːˈɫ̪äːbrʊ̃ˑ]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /kan.deˈla.brum/, [kän̪d̪eˈläːbrum]

Noun

candēlābrum n (genitive candēlābrī); second declension

1. A branched candlestick; chandelier, candelabrum, lampstand.

Declension

Second-declension noun (neuter).

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	candēlābrum	candēlābra
Genitive	candēlābrī	candēlābrōrum
Dative	candēlābrō	candēlābrīs
Accusative	candēlābrum	candēlābra
Ablative	candēlābrō	candēlābrīs
Vocative	candēlābrum	candēlābra

Derived terms

• candēlābrārius

Related terms

• candefaciō
• candēla
• candēns
• candentia
• candeō
• candescō
• candicō
• candidus
• candificō
• candor

Descendants

• Aragonese: candeler
• Catalan: canelobre
• Dutch: kandelaar
• English: candelabrum, chandelier
• French: candélabre, chandelier
• German: Kandelaber
• Hungarian: kandeláber
• Ido: kandelabro
• Italian: candelabro
• Polish: kandelabr
• Portuguese: candelabro
• Russian: канделя́бр (kandeljábr), канделя́бр (kandeljábr)
• Sardinian:
  • Sardinian: candelobre
• Sassarese: canderabru
• Spanish: candelabro

Further reading

• “candelabrum”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “candelabrum”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• candelabrum in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette
• “candelabrum”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “candelabrum”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890) A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin