Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Latin term or phrase:
cum petere
English translation:
To strive together
Added to glossary by
landreini (X)
Feb 12, 2002 18:02
23 yrs ago
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Latin term
landreini (X)
landreini (X)
Works in: English
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cum petere
Latin to English
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looking for the Latin root of competition - which I understand is either cum petere or com petere. I am told it translates as "with"/"together" "to seek" - is this correct? is it "cum" or "com" and what does "petere" translate to exactly? I may be spelling "petere" in correctly - How do you say "to seek"?
Proposed translations
(English)
| 5 | To strive together |
Colin Brayton
|
| 4 +1 | you are right |
Ineke Hardy
|
| 5 | cum + petere |
Randi Stenstrop
|
Proposed translations
23 mins
Colin Brayton
Native in English
English as she is spoke
Native in: English 
Works in: Arabic to English, Portuguese to English, Spanish to English, and 2 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
4
Selected
To strive together
May I recommend The Roots of English for PC: http://ablemedia.com/ctcweb/showcase/roots.html#roots?
The relevant definition is "to strive together or with" or even "against" -- the prefix "com" (from the preposition "cum" does means "with," in but in a very nuanced way. "Competere" also means "to occur at the same time, coincide." You could say that athletes compete when they meet at a given time to strive with and against others for a commonly sought goal: the victor's laurels.
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Note added at 2002-02-12 18:29:57 (GMT)
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note that the same Latin root yield \"competent\" and \"competence\" from competentia \"agreement\" -- this from the sense of \"coinciding, being suitable or relevant\"
The relevant definition is "to strive together or with" or even "against" -- the prefix "com" (from the preposition "cum" does means "with," in but in a very nuanced way. "Competere" also means "to occur at the same time, coincide." You could say that athletes compete when they meet at a given time to strive with and against others for a commonly sought goal: the victor's laurels.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-02-12 18:29:57 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
note that the same Latin root yield \"competent\" and \"competence\" from competentia \"agreement\" -- this from the sense of \"coinciding, being suitable or relevant\"
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "thank you very much for responding even though there was already a "corrrect" response - your additions helped me considerably - also thank you for such a quick response
best,
larry"
+1
16 mins
Ineke Hardy
Netherlands
Netherlands
Specializes in field
Netherlands
Style, accuracy, and research skills
Native in: Dutch 
Works in: Afrikaans to English, Dutch to English, Flemish to English, and 11 more.
you are right
petere = to aim at, to attack, to seek
cum = (together) with
Thus you get the sense of aiming at or seeking something together with another / others hence the sense of competing as we know it.
"competere" is a late form
cum = (together) with
Thus you get the sense of aiming at or seeking something together with another / others hence the sense of competing as we know it.
"competere" is a late form
31 mins
Randi Stenstrop
Elegant Precision
Native in: Danish
Works in: Swedish to Danish, English to Danish, German to Danish, and 1 more.
cum + petere
com is the combining for of cum - "with or "together with" - chiefly before b, f, m and p.
petere means to fall upon, aim at/seek
So competition means seeking something "together with" somebody else - or that more than one are seeking the same thing.
petere means to fall upon, aim at/seek
So competition means seeking something "together with" somebody else - or that more than one are seeking the same thing.
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