Translation
image, likeness; statue, idol; phantom, ghost
Examples
.
The statue of the god stood in the temple.
facta .
The images were made of gold.
.
He saw the ghost of the dead man at night.
vetuerunt.
They forbade all images of the gods.
orabat.
The priest was praying before the image.
Simulacrum, simulacri, n., second declension, from simulo, "make like", with the -crum suffix that names an instrument or product, as in sepulcrum and lavacrum. A likeness of any kind.
Three senses sit on top of one another and the author decides which. In Cicero it is the cult statue of a god. In Lucretius it is the technical term for the thin film of atoms peeling off objects that makes sight possible. In the poets it is the shade of the dead. The Christian writers then took it over as the word for an idol, so in this corpus simulacra are usually being smashed rather than honoured. English simulacrum kept the hollow, second-rate note of the last sense.
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simulacrum: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Latin word "simulacrum" (image, likeness; statue, idol; phantom, ghost): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 18.