sum

s--um, su--m, Vorlage:lat. —Vrb "bin "sein, bestehend, haben)"

Die Wurzel *h₁es- war auf Urindogermanisch auf jeden Fall bereits eine Kopula. Die e-Stufe (siehe Ablaut) wird in Formen wie dem deutschen ist, Latein est, wieder angetroffen, während die Schwundstufe Formen hervorruft, die mit /s/ beginnen, wie deutsch sind oder französisch sommes. In der Ursprache war *h₁es- ein athematisches Verb auf -mi, also war die erste Person Singular*h₁esmi; diese Flexion überlebt im Englischen am, Sanskrit asmi, Latein sum, Altkirchenslawisch esmь, …usw.

Latin

Alternative forms

• esum, esom (archaic)
• essere (late, early medieval)

Etymology

The present stem is from Proto-Italic *ezom, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ésmi (“I am, I exist”). Note that the form sum doesn't go back directly to the Proto-Italic one, which should have given *erum, parallel for example to eris from *ezes. Instead, in the form's direct predecessor, the initial vowel was deleted and the consonant -z-, allophonically voiced between vowels, was devoiced to s instead of undergoing rhotacism. The archaically attested forms esum and esom show that the full form had also been preserved, but was pushed out of use by the Classical times. Note that although the forms es and est underwent the same apheresis of the initial vowel, this time both outcomes were preserved in the Classical language, with the shortened forms functioning as clitics.

Cognates include Ancient Greek εἰμί (eimí), Sanskrit अस्मि (ásmi), Persian هستم‎ (hastam) Faliscan 𐌄𐌔𐌞 (esú), Old English eom (English am).

The perfect stem is from Proto-Italic *(fe)fūai, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰúHt (“to become, be”) (whence also fīō (“to become, to be made”), and future and imperfect inflections -bō, -bam). Compare also the etymology at fore.

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /sum/, [s̠ʊ̃ˑ]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /sum/, [sum]

Audio (Ecclesiastical)

Duration: 2 seconds.0:02

Verb

sum (present infinitive esse, perfect active fuī, future participle futūrus); irregular conjugation, irregular, no passive, no supine stem except in the future active participle

1. (copulative) to be, exist, have [+dative]

   Civis romanus sum. ― I am a Roman citizen.

   Sum sine regno. ― I am without a kingdom.

   Dixit duas res ei rubori fuisse.

1. He said that two things had abashed him.

1. Mihi est multum tempus.

1. I have a lot of time.

   (literally, “A lot of time is to me.”)

1. (existential) there be [ quotations ▼]
2. (Medieval Latin, in the past tense) to go

   Ad quod castrum vincendum Pisani fuerunt cum quinquaginta navibus, plattis et schafis, etc,

1. They went to conquer Pisanius' castle with fifty boats, engines, siege weapons, etc.

1. (Medieval Latin, Ecclesiastical Latin), imperative be