quidam

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English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin quīdam.

Noun[edit]

quidam (plural quidams)

  1. A nobody; a person of no importance. [from 16th c.]
    • 1603, Michel de Montaigne, translated by John Florio, Essays, III.12:
      A quidam gallant determined upon a time to surprise both my house and my selfe.
    • 1792, Thomas Holcroft, Anna St. Ives, vol. IV, letter 77:
      She singing a miserable ditty, a bead-roll of lamentable rhymes, strung together by this Quidam!—This Henley!

French[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ki.dam/
  • Audio(file)

Noun[edit]

quidam m (plural quidams)

  1. used to designate persons whose name are unknown or not mentioned
  2. a person whose identity is not indicated, in a conversation, a writing
  3. individual

Further reading[edit]

Latin[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From quis +‎ -dam (indefinite adverbial suffix). Compare quondam (“at one time”).

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

quīdam (feminine quaedam, neuter quiddam); relative/interrogative pronoun (with m optionally → n in compounds) with an indeclinable portion

  1. someone, a certain one/thing; something

Usage notes[edit]

Not to be confused with quidem.

Declension[edit]

Indefinite pronoun.

Number Singular Plural
Case / Gender Masculine Feminine Neuter Masculine Feminine Neuter
Nominative quīdam quaedam quiddam quīdam1 quaedam
Genitive cuiusdam2 quōrundam
quōrumdam 		quārundam
quārumdam 		quōrundam
quōrumdam
Dative cuidam3 quibusdam4
Accusative quendam
quemdam 		quandam
quamdam 		quiddam quōsdam1 quāsdam quaedam
Ablative quōdam quādam quōdam quibusdam4

1An alternative masculine nominative/accusative plural form quēsdam occurs in Accius.
2The genitive singular was spelled quoiusdam before the Augustan period.
3The dative singular was spelled quoidam before the Augustan period.
4The dative/ablative plural has a rare alternative form quīsdam/queisdam.

Adjective[edit]

quīdam (feminine quaedam, neuter quoddam); relative/interrogative pronoun (with m optionally → n in compounds) with an indeclinable portion

  1. a certain (person or thing), some (person or thing), one (in the sense of "a specific" person or thing not previously introduced in the present discourse)
    • c. 62 BCE, Cicero, chapter 1, in Pro Archia Poeta‎[1], §2:
      etenim omnes artes, quae ad humanitatem pertinent, habent quoddam commune vinculum et quasi cognatione quadam inter se continentur.
      Indeed all the arts, which pertain to humanity, have some common link and by a certain almost-kindred are held together.

Declension[edit]

Indefinite determiner.

Number Singular Plural
Case / Gender Masculine Feminine Neuter Masculine Feminine Neuter
Nominative quīdam quaedam quoddam quīdam quaedam
Genitive cuiusdam1 quōrundam
quōrumdam 		quārundam
quārumdam 		quōrundam
quōrumdam
Dative cuidam2 quibusdam3
Accusative quendam
quemdam 		quandam
quamdam 		quoddam quōsdam quāsdam quaedam
Ablative quōdam quādam quōdam quibusdam3

1The genitive singular was spelled quoiusdam before the Augustan period.
2The dative singular was spelled quoidam before the Augustan period.
3The dative/ablative plural has a rare alternative form quīsdam/queisdam.

See also[edit]

Latin correlatives (edit)
type demonstrative anaphoric identity interrogative/
relative		 indefinite negative other
proximal medial distal relative indefinite universal free choice negative polarity
basic hic iste, istic ille, illic is ipse, īdem quis/quī quisquis, quīcumque quis, quī, quīdam, aliquis, aliquī, quispiam quisque quīvis, quīlibet quisquam, ūllus, °aliquisquam nēmō, nihil, nūllus alius
dual uter utercumque alteruter uterque utervīs, uterlibet neuter alter
place hīc istīc illīc ibī̆ ibī̆dem ubī̆ ubiubi, ubī̆cumque alicubī, uspiam ubīque ubivīs, ubilibet usquam nusquam, nūllibī alibī, aliās
source hinc istinc illinc inde indidem unde undecumque, undeunde alicunde undique °undelibet aliunde
destination hūc, °hōrsum istūc, °istōrsum illūc, °illōrsum eō eōdem quō, quōrsum quōquō, quōcumque aliquō, quōpiam, °aliquōvorsum quōvīs, quōlibet quōquam nusquam, nūllōrsum aliō, aliōrsum
method,
means,
path,
place 		hāc istāc illāc eā eādem quā quāquā, quācumque aliquā quāque quāvīs, quālibet nēquāquam, haudquāquam aliā
manner hōc modō istō modō illō modō ita, sīc,
eō modō		 item, itidem ut, quī, quō modō, quōmodo, quemadmodum utut, utcumque, quōmodocumque quī, quōdam modō, aliquō modō utique quōmodolibet ūllō modō nūllō modō aliter, aliōquī, alterō/aliō modō
time num, nunc ōlim tum, tunc simul quandō, ‡cum cumque, quandōcumque, quandōque quondam, aliquandō quandōque quandōlibet umquam numquam aliās
quantity tam †tamen, †tandem quam †quamquam aliquam quamvīs, quamlibet
size tantus tantusdem quantus quantuscumque aliquantus quantusvīs, quantuslibet
quality tālis quālis quālis, quāliscumque aliquālis quālislibet
number tot totidem quot quotquot, quotcumque aliquot quotlibet
order totus quotus quotuscumque aliquotus quotuslibet
repetition totiēns quotiēns quotiēnscumque aliquotiēns quotiēnslibet
multiplication totuplex quotuplex
† Turned conjunction with original meaning somewhat dissimulated
° Rare
‡only used as a conjunction, not as an interrogative

References[edit]

  • “quidam”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  • “quidam”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
  • quidam in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
  • quidam in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
  • Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎[2], London: Macmillan and Co.
    • I have a few words to say on this: mihi quaedam dicenda sunt de hac re
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