¶ On the Elegance of Terms, Collected Briefly

from Laurentius Valla and Certain Others

According to the Order of the Alphabet

¶ Avarus miser/greedy and avaricia avarice are always taken in a negative sense. And therefore, in Scripture, the miser is reproached.
¶ Avidus eager/greedy and aviditas eagerness are taken in a positive sense and concern honorable things.
¶ Ave hail/greetings and auete hail (plural) are said by one arriving and departing. Thus, salve be well/greetings is said by one arriving and departing. And one responds to the person arriving himself with salve. But unskilled people, upon arriving, say proficiat may it profit you instead of that. And others respond bene veneritis may you have come well, which is against elegance. But vale and valete farewell are only for those departing. Audio te I hear you means I perceive you with my ears; it also means I believe you. Audio tibi I listen to you means I obey you.
¶ Ausculto te I listen to you means I hear you. Ausculto tibi I listen to you means I obey you.
¶ Autem however/moreover and vero truly/but are placed to distinguish thoughts. But there is this difference: vero is joined with neque nor, age come now, sane certainly. For example, in those preceding [sentences], neque vero nor truly, iam vero now truly. Autem is joined when nothing precedes it, such as non autem vobis mentior I do not lie to you, however.
¶ We say both auxilium help and auxilium fero I bring help. Truly, we do not say opem do I give aid, but rather opem fero I bring aid.
¶ Abundantia abundance of good things is the result of some cause. Redundantia overflow/superfluity, however, is of evil and useless things.
¶ Abdicare to disinherit is to expel a son from his inheritance while the father is still living. Exheredare to disinherit, however, is [to do so] after death In Dutch: "onteruen".
¶ Abrogare to repeal is to take away foreign things, or to abolish a law in part. Derogatur to derogate, however, [applies] to an entire law. But Arrogare to arrogate is to claim too much for oneself insolently.
¶ Abstinentia abstinence is that by which one abstains from the property of others, causing injury to no one. Continentia continence is that by which one restrains oneself from one's own [desires], and it is with respect to pleasures.
¶ Accola neighbor/dweller nearby is said of one who dwells at a place and nearby. Therefore, whoever dwells near waters is called an accola, and it does not matter if it is in his own or another's [territory]. But those who have houses and polished cities in the mountains are called incole inhabitants/settlers. Those who [live] near the mountains are accole. Therefore, not without merit is it to be read in the Psalm: "And Jacob was an incola inhabitant in the land of Cham," because the Greek voice persists, as Laurentius says.
¶ Accusare to accuse is to cast a crime before a judge or some other person, [meaning] to signify and show that one has sinned. Incusare to blame/reproach is to reproach another regarding his character with a complaint, for the reason that you have been affected by injury from him. And it is not [appropriate to use] accusare for a greater [offense] of a lesser [person], nor incusare for a lesser [offense] of a greater [person].

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