peculium

/ (pɪˈkjuːlɪəm) /

Save This Word!

noun

Roman law property that a father or master allowed his child or slave to hold as his own

QUIZ

GOOSES. GEESES. I WANT THIS QUIZ ON PLURAL NOUNS!

Test how much you really know about regular and irregular plural nouns with this quiz.

Question 1 of 9

Which of the following nouns has an irregular plural form?

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Word Origin for peculium

C17: from Latin; see peculiar

Words nearby peculium

peculiar, peculiar institution, peculiarity, peculiarize, peculiar people, peculium, pecuniary, pecuniary advantage, ped, pedagogical, pedagogics

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

How to use peculium in a sentence

Thus the slave gets a chance of acquiring what will be as a matter of fact a peculium.
Domesday Book and Beyond|Frederic William Maitland
The gains of the 'filii familias Assessores' were to be protected as if they were 'castrense peculium.'
The Letters of Cassiodorus|Cassiodorus (AKA Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus Senator)
At present each prisoner has a peculium, or at all events it is within his power to create one.
Old and New Paris, v. 2|Henry Sutherland Edwards
The institution of the peculium, or private fund, is of the first necessity for this purpose.
Old and New Paris, v. 2|Henry Sutherland Edwards

The "peculium" is, of course, elastic, and there is no particular place for drawing the line in the banker's book.
Punch - Volume 25 (Jul-Dec 1853)|Various