congregari

Congregari is a Latin verb meaning “to be gathered” or “to come together.” It is the present passive infinitive of the deponent verb congregari, whose active counterpart is congregare, “to gather (together).” The principal parts of this deponent verb are congregor, congregari, congregatus sum, with the same forms used for both meaning and morphology, only the sense remains active even though the forms are passive in appearance.

Etymology and related terms: Congregari derives from con- “together” and the stem greg- from gregis “flock, herd.” This root is shared with other words referring to groups or gatherings, such as gregarious and congregation. The deponent nature of congregari means that it uses passive endings to express its tenses, but its meaning is active, as is typical for deponent verbs in Latin.

Usage and meaning: In Latin, congregari expresses the sense of coming together or being gathered, whether literally (a crowd assembling) or figuratively (things being collected). As a deponent, it appears in passive morphology across tenses while conveying an active sense. It is common in classical and later Latin to see congregari in subordinate clauses or with impersonal verbs, for example in constructions that express that a gathering is to be or has been formed.

Examples (Latin with rough translation): Multitudo congregari incipit. The multitude begins to be gathered. Congregari licet. It is permitted to be gathered. These illustrate the verb’s literal and permissive senses in context, though many other idiomatic usages exist in Latin literature.

See also: Congregare, congregation, gregarious.