alō

al-ō „Ich nähre, erhalte“

From Proto-Italic *alō, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂életi (“grow, nourish”). Related to *oleō.

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈa.loː/, [ˈäɫ̪oː]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈa.lo/, [ˈäːlo]

Verb

alō (present infinitive alere, perfect active aluī, supine altum or alitum); third conjugation

1. to encourage or promote the development (of a thing): to foster, to further, to promote (something) [ synonyms ▲]

   Synonyms: foveō, iuvō, sublevō

2. to cause (a thing) to continue over time: to further, to maintain, to sustain [ synonyms ▲][ quotations ▼]

   Synonyms: subsistō, sufferō, sustentō, sustineō

3. (in a particular sense): to feed, to nourish, to nurture [ synonyms ▲]

   Synonyms: nūtriō, sagīnō, pāsco

4. (pertaining to living things): to cultivate, to raise, to rear, etc. (as a child, an animal, etc.)

   Hominum gratia generatur, aluntur bestiae.

1. It is for the sake of man that beasts are bred.

Usage notes

Alō refers to the transitive act of causing someone or something to grow or develop. There was a companion lost stative to alō in Old Latin *aleō (“I grow up, I develop, I mature”), which remained effective in Classical Latin through its derived verb alēscō (“I grow, I grow up, I increase”).