rubicon

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun the boundary in ancient times between Italy and Gaul; Caesar's crossing it with his army in 49 BC was an act of war
  2. noun a line that when crossed permits of no return and typically results in irrevocable commitment

Etymology

The noun is derived from the phrase cross the Rubicon (“to make an irreversible decision or to take an action with consequences”). Julius Caesar’s crossing of the Rubicon, a small river in northeastern Italy, on 10 January 49 B.C.E., indicated his intention to start a civil war with Pompey. Rubicon is derived from Latin Rubicō, Rubicōn (“the Rubicon”), possibly from rubeus (“red, reddish”), from rubeō (“to be red”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁rewdʰ- (“red”), an allusion to the colour of the river caused by mud deposits. The verb is derived from the noun.

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