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I am trying to create a word that means "division of a single God", but I am having some trouble. If I understand correctly, any word must have a suffix, root and prefix, but sometimes I have only two prefixes and a suffix, or a prefix and an existing Latin word.

So here are what I came up with Theodivisio. Theo is the prefix for God, divisio is the whole word for division in Latin. I also came up with Theokineation - theo is the prefix for God, kine is the prefix for division and ation is the suffix for result. I am wondering if I am doing this properly. Do we absolutely need a root or I can just use a suffix and a prefix?

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    Diosect? Diosection? Meaning to cut apart God. Or do you mean to describe a component of God (like a term for the holy Spirit)? Diofract? Diofraction? To break apart God.
    – DWKraus
    Commented Jul 26, 2021 at 22:53
  • Do you have some kind of guideline on how to create a word properly, because I have a feeling that I am not doing it properly?
    – user36239
    Commented Jul 26, 2021 at 22:55
  • I meant it like cutting a piece of paper into parts.
    – user36239
    Commented Jul 26, 2021 at 22:56
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    You need to know a lot of Latin to intuit these things out. Diosect would mean to cut apart god. It's also close to dissect, so reader would be able to intuitively understand the meaning. Think of English words that mean something similar, and it's frightening how often they have Latin roots. Theo- also works, if you prefer it as a prefix.
    – DWKraus
    Commented Jul 26, 2021 at 23:02
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    I’m voting to close this question because it is either a request to critique a specific phrase or a request that belongs on another Stack Exchange network — linguistics@SE seems to have questions about rules concerning neologism using latin
    – EDL
    Commented Jul 27, 2021 at 1:03

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A prefix walks into a tabernae sopionibus scribam:

The process of taking Latin and making English words is less scientific than you might think - although it's very popular in science. Despite what English majors might want you to think, there aren't really formal rules.

Start with a functional knowledge of Latin. This is easier than it sounds, because a LOT of people know a lot more Latin than they realize. I work in science, and people want their fancy terms to have that Latin gravitas. Fortunately, there are lots of good online translation tools that help with accuracy, but it helps to be able to intuit alternate words with the same or virtually the same meaning (like theo- and dio- as prefixes both mean god. Try to translate many similar words into Latin, since they will come across with different alternatives. For tavern (tabernae sopionibus scribam) you get a phrase, but pub and bar both translate identically into Latin. Catholics get an unfair advantage here, because they are still exposed to lots of Latin in church despite reforms.

Then start splicing words together with the meanings you want until you get something that has the feel you are looking for. With your division of god, I would go dio- for god and -sect or -section for cutting. Diosect would roughly translate to cutting apart god. Since this word is similar to dissect, which people know and understand, it is more intuitive to potential readers. Theodiviso, while technically correct, sounds like you're discussing the differences between Father/Son/Holy Spirit, since it sound like "divisions of god."

Similarly, theokineation sounds a lot like kination, which is a cosmology based on kinetics of matter in the early universe. While the words share common Latin origins, the application and sound of it are different. Theokineation sounds like God shaping the creation of the universe.

So a decent working knowledge of Latin, a good translator program, and an ear for what sounds right will get you a long way towards making your own Latin compound words for fun language.

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    Latin Language SE has an excellent Q&A on automated Latin translation. In brief, for a short matter of a few words, it can be pretty good, and therefore yes, it’s pretty good for this purpose, but anything longer than about 5 words very quickly becomes utter nonsense.
    – KRyan
    Commented Jul 27, 2021 at 14:50
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    tabernae sopionibus scribam - really? "scribam" looks like "I may write" to me, "sopionibus" should be something with sleep. My German-Latin dictionary suggests "taberna liquorum" (though "taberna" is probably close enough)
    – Hagen von Eitzen
    Commented Jul 27, 2021 at 17:41
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    I think I'd go with diosection or perhaps theosection, although with any coinage, it's important to give sufficient context for the reader to understand it.
    – D. A. Hosek
    Commented Jul 27, 2021 at 20:05
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    @HagenvonEitzen I think the OP's Latin is far less than he imagines. In this instance, the phrase is from Catullus (a great source for naughty Latin), and translates to "I shall draw (scribam first person active future), men with protruding penises (sopionibus plural dative) on the front of your storefront/tavern (tabernae genitive singular—there's a missing frontem (accusative singular) which the genitive is attached to).
    – D. A. Hosek
    Commented Jul 27, 2021 at 20:14
  • "dio as prefix means god" Where? In Latin, di(a) means as a prefix to separate or divide.
    – eques
    Commented Jul 27, 2021 at 21:39

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