Etymology, Latin, Scientia

Etymology

From the present active participle of sciō (“I can, know, understand”), sciēns, scientem (“knowing, aware; having expertise”) +‎ -ia (“abstract noun suffix”), from Proto-Italic *skijō, from Proto-Indo-European *skey- (“to distinguish, to dissect”), then from Proto-Indo-European*sek- (“to cut”).

Attested from Varro onwards (early 1st century B.C.E.).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /skiˈen.ti.a/, [s̠kiˈɛn̪t̪iä]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ʃiˈen.t͡si.a/, [ʃiˈɛnt̪͡s̪iä]

Noun

scientia f (genitive scientiae); first declension

1. (abstract):
   1. knowledge, awareness, cognizance (the state of knowing a fact or situation)

      Synonyms: cognitiō, nōtitia

   2. learning, learnedness, erudition (the state of having an extensive knowledge)

      Synonyms: ēruditiō, sapientia

   3. expert understanding of a skill, art, science, etc. (also as opposed to practice)

      Synonyms: intellēctus, ars

      Antonyms: ūsus, experientia, exercitātiō

2. (concrete):
   1. (philosophy) that which is known (as opposed to a mere belief, translating Ancient Greek ἐπιστήμη (epistḗmē))

      Antonyms: opīniō, suspiciō, coniectūra

   2. (Medieval Latin, logic) (as distinguished according to the direction: from cause to effect or vice versa, corr. to Ancient Greek διότι (dióti) vs. ὅτι (hóti))

      scientia propter quid ― a knowledge derived from cause to effect

      scientia quia ― a knowledge derived from effect to cause

   3. the knowledge, lore, scholarship of a particular discipline

      Synonyms: doctrīna, ars

      scientia speculātīva (Medieval Latin) ― theoretical knowledge

   4. the know-how, skill, expertise (applied knowledge)

      Synonyms: perītia, ars

      scientia practica (Medieval Latin) ― practical knowledge

   5. (Medieval Latin) a science (an organized branch of methodically-acquired knowledge with a unified subject-matter)

      Synonym: disciplīna

      Hyponyms: historia nātūrālis, philosophia nātūrālis, physica (all “natural science”)