tangere

Tangere is a Latin verb meaning to touch, touch gently, or make contact. It is a high-frequency verb in classical Latin and serves as the parent term for many compounds and derivative words. As a third-conjugation verb, its infinitive is tangere and its meanings extend from literal touch to figurative influence or contact.

In grammar, tangere forms standard Latin paradigms. Present active indicative includes tangō, tangis, tangit, tangimus, tangitis, tangunt. The perfect active is tetigī, with the supine tactum. The present passive includes tangor, tangēris, tangitur, tangimur, tangiminī, tanguntur. The present active participle is tangēns, and the perfect passive participle is tactus. The future active forms tangam, tanges, tangent, tangēmus, tangētis, tangent. These forms support a wide range of uses in classical poetry, prose, and scholastic Latin.

Tangere has given rise to many derivatives in English and other languages. The noun tangent, in geometry, is derived from the Latin participle tangens meaning “touching,” referring to a line that touches a curve at a point. Tangible and tangible derivatives come from Latin tangibilis, reflecting the sense of touchable or graspable. The term tangential also derives from tangens. The phrase noli me tangere, meaning “do not touch me,” is a famous biblical Latin usage illustrating the verb’s literal and figurative range.

In summary, tangere is a foundational Latin verb whose grammatical forms and semantic reach have influenced many related terms in science, philosophy, and everyday language.