Operatur

Operatur is the third-person singular present indicative form of the Latin deponent verb operor, operari, operatus sum, meaning to work or to operate. In deponent verbs, the forms are passive in appearance but active in meaning; therefore operatur is typically translated as “he/she/it works” or “is working.” The form appears in classical and late Latin texts.

Grammatically, operatur comes from a deponent verb, so it uses passive endings but conveys an active sense. The present tense is operatur, the imperfect would be operabatur (he was working), and the perfect is operatus est (he has worked or he worked). Like other deponents, it governs subjects in the nominative and can be modified by adverbs such as cotidie (“daily”).

Usage and nuance: operatur is used to describe performing physical labor, operating a device or system, or engaging in a task. In literature and inscriptions, it often appears in contexts emphasizing work, effort, or action rather than mere existence.

Etymology: The form derives from the Latin verb operor (and its infinitive operari), with the root oper- conveying the sense of work or operation. Related Latin terms include opera (works, labors) and other words built from the same root that influence later Romance languages and the English word operator through intermediate stages.

See also: Latin verbs, deponent verbs, operari, opera, operator.