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LATIN · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

pollex.

thumb;

6 characters2 syllables approx.Latina language

Meaning & usage

noun[ˈpɔl.lɛks]Classical-Latin[ˈpɔl.leks]

  1. thumb

    declension-3 · masculine

  2. big toe

    declension-3 · masculine

  3. a unit of distance, equivalent to approximately 24.6 mm; one uncia (see also: Ancient Roman units of measurement)

    declension-3 · masculine

  4. seal (insignia)

    declension-3 · masculine
Where this word comes from

Of uncertain origin. Traditionally connected to Proto-Slavic *palьcь (“thumb”), with contamination from Latin polleō (“to be strong”) (hence pollex, not *pōlex). However, De Vaan is unconvinced, and instead prefers Meier-Brügger's derivation from a Proto-Italic *por-likʰ-s (“which is licked over”), from Proto-Indo-European *per- (“through”) + *leyǵʰ- (“to lick”), with the second syllable in the nominative singular becoming -lex based on the model of other body parts, such as vortex (“whirl; top of the head”) inflecting with -ex.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.