licet

Latin

From Proto-Italic *likēt, from a root of the shape *leyk-, with no certain cognates outside of Italic.^[1] Cognate with liceor, liceō, Oscan 𐌋𐌝𐌊𐌝𐌕𐌖𐌃 (líkítud, “it is permitted”); outside of Italic, compare perhaps Lithuanian reikė́ti (“to need”).^[2]

licet (present infinitive licēre, perfect active licuit or licitum est, future participle licitūrus); second conjugation, no passive

(with dative) to be allowed; to be permitted
Licetne pauca?
May I speak a word with you?
(literally, “Are a few [words] permitted?”)

Quod licet Iovī, nōn licet bovī
Gods may do what cattle may not
(literally, “What is permissible for Jupiter is not permissible for an ox”)
- 16 BCE, Ovid, The Loves 3.4:
  Cui peccare licet, peccat minus.
  To whom it is allowed to sin, sins less.
(impersonal, with subjunctive or, post-classically, indicative) although, even if
- Juvenal, Saturae 1.105:
  licet ipse negam
  even if I were to deny it

Conjugation of licet (second conjugation, mostly impersonal, active only)
indicative		singular			plural
indicative		first	second	third	first	second	third
active	present	—	—	licet	—	—	licent
	imperfect	—	—	licēbat	—	—	licēbant
	future	—	—	licēbit	—	—	—
	perfect	—	—	licuit, licitum est	—	—	—
	pluperfect	—	—	licuerat, licitum erat	—	—	—
	future perfect	—	—	licuerit, licitum erit	—	—	—
subjunctive		singular			plural
subjunctive		first	second	third	first	second	third
active	present	—	—	liceat	—	—	liceant
	imperfect	—	—	licēret	—	—	—
	perfect	—	—	licuerit, licitum sit	—	—	—
	pluperfect	—	—	licuisset, licitum esset	—	—	—
imperative		singular			plural
imperative		first	second	third	first	second	third
active	present	—	—	—	—	—	—
active	future	—	licētō	licētō	—	—	—
non-finite forms		active			passive
non-finite forms		present	perfect	future	present	perfect	future
infinitives		licēre	licuisse, licitum esse	licitūrum esse	—	—	—
participles		licēns	licitus	licitūrus	—	—	—

“licet”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
“licet”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
licet in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎^[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
- this much I can vouch for: illud pro certo affirmare licet
- allow me to say: pace tua dixerim or dicere liceat
- I have no objection: per me licet
Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 669

^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008) “licet”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 340
^ “licet”, in Lietuvių kalbos etimologinio žodyno duomenų bazė [Lithuanian etymological dictionary database], 2007–2012