Roman

From Old French Romain, from Latin Rōmānus. In reference to the Byzantine Empire, via the Byzantine Greek endonym Ῥωμαῖος (Rhōmaîos). By surface analysis, Rome +‎ -an. Doublet of Romano.

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɹəʊ.mən/
• (US) enPR: rōmən, IPA^(key): /ˈɹoʊ.mən/
• Hyphenation: Ro‧man
• Homophone: roamin' (some accents)
• Rhymes: -əʊmən

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Roman (comparative more Roman, superlative most Roman)

1. Of or from Rome.
2. (historical) Of or from the Roman Empire.
3. (historical, historiography) Of or from the Byzantine Empire.
4. Of noble countenance but with little facial expression.
   • 1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “The Influence of an Invitation”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 16:

     "Yes, I feel that I ought; and with me, to feel that I ought to do a thing, is to do it!" added he, looking quite Roman with excess of virtue.

5. (of type or text) Supporting the characters of the Latin alphabet.
6. (law, colloquial) Used to distinguish a Roman numeral from an Arabic numeral in oral discourse.

   You will find the term defined at the end of Roman one.

7. (typography) A font that is upright, as opposed to oblique or italic. (See roman font.)
8. Of or pertaining to the Roman Catholic Church or the Holy See.
9. (architecture) Of a style characterised by the size and boldness of its round arches and vaults, and having baths, aqueducts, basilicas, amphitheatres, etc.

• (Byzantine Roman): Rhomaian, Romaic, Romaean

• Romaean

Roman (plural Romans)

1. A native or resident of Rome.
2. (historical) A native or resident of the Roman Empire.
3. (historical, historiography) A native or resident of the Byzantine Empire.
   • 2010, John Wortley trans. John Skylitzes as A Synopsis of Byzantine History, 811–1057, p. 442, n. 192:

     Kars was the capital of the small Armenian kingdom of Vanand, ruled by Gagik (the same name as the sovereign of Ani) from 1029 to 1064, when he surrendered his kingdom to the Romans. In 1053 it was taken by the Seljoukids, probably under the command of Qutlumus...

4. (uncountable) The Roman script.
5. (printing, countable) A single letter or character in Roman type.
6. (dated) A Roman Catholic.
   • 2006, Sarah Waters, The Night Watch, Virago Press, page 151:

     ‘Is it like―I don’t know―Catholicism? One only spots the other Romans when one’s practised it oneself?’

• (Byzantine Roman): Rhomaian, Romaean

Roman (plural Romans)

1. A male given name from Latin recently borrowed from continental Europe.
2. A surname.
3. A city in Neamț County, Romania.

• Armon, Manor, Maron, Moran, Narom, Nor Am, Nor-Am, NorAm, Norma, manor, moran, morna, norma

• Hyphenation: Ro‧man

Roman

1. a male given name

Borrowed from Latin Rōmānus.

• IPA^(key): [ˈroman]

Roman m anim

1. a male given name from Latin

From Latin Rōmānus.

• IPA^(key): /ˈromɑn/

Roman

1. a male given name from Latin

• IPA^(key): /ʁoˈmaːn/

  • Audio:

    (file)

From French roman.

Roman m (strong, genitive Romanes or Romans, plural Romane)

1. (literature) novel

• umfangreiche erzählende Dichtung in Prosa (descriptive)

• Prosagroßform
• Literatur

From Latin Rōmānus.

Roman

1. a male given name from Latin

• “Roman” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Roman” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
• “Roman” in Duden online

Roman

1. Romania

Learned borrowing from Latin Rōmānus, from rōmānus (“Roman, of Rome”, adjective).

• IPA^(key): /ˈrɔ.man/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔman
• Syllabification: Ro‧man

Roman m pers (diminutive Romek)

1. a male given name from Latin

Named after Roman I of Moldavia.

• IPA^(key): /ˈroman/

• Audio:

  (file)

Roman m

1. a city in Neamț County, Romania
2. (historical) a county of Romania

• IPA^(key): [ˈrɔman]

Roman m pers

1. a male given name from Latin
2. a surname

• “Roman”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2003–2025

Borrowed from Romani rromano. Cognate to English Romani. Not related to Rumen (“Romanian”) or Romalı (“a Roman”).

• IPA^(key): /ɾomɑn/

Roman

1. a member of the Roma people, Rom, Romani

   Synonym: (offensive) çingene

2. novel