gen1tive

& s. [Fr. génit if the genitive case, from Lat. genitivus of or pertaining to gen eration, from genitum, sup. of gig no =to beget; Sp. & Ital. genitivo. The Latin genitivus casus the genitive case, was a mistranslation of the Greek genikē ptosis, which properly should have been translated casus general is = the general case, or that case which denotes the genus or kind. (See extract from Max Müller under B.)] A. As adjective : Gram.: A term applied to that case of nouns, adjectives, pronouns, ., which pertains to or indicates origin, source, po e ion, or the like, or to the relation expre ed by such a case. In English it is called po e ive. In B. As subst.: That case in the declension of nouns, adjectives, pronouns, ., which denotes or indicates origin, source, po e ion, or the like. English it is called the po e ive case, and is the only case which retains a case ending. "The Latin genitivus is a mere blunder, for the Greek word genike could never mean genitivus. Genitivus, if it is meant to expre the case of origin or birth, would in Greek have been called gennetikë , not genikë . Gen ikë , in Greek, had a much wider, a much more philosophical meaning. It means casus general is , the general case, or rather the case which expre es the genus or kind. This is the real power of the genitive . The termination of the genitive is, in most cases, identical with those derivative suffixes by which substantives are changed into adjectives." -Max Müller: Lectures on the Science of Language. gen-1-to-, pref . [Lat. genitus , pa. par. of gig no =to beget.] Pertaining to generating, as the genito crural nerve, the genito -urinary muscles.