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I know it’s a bit silly since I don’t think there was a concept of a gamer back then but just curious if it’s possible to make something close to that phrase?

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    "Back then"?? Lingua latina vivit!
    – Ben Kovitz
    Feb 28 at 10:53
  • sorry, I mean when the latin language was at its peak. Not sure when that was but I’m assuming the Roman Empire era. Feb 28 at 15:42

1 Answer 1

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I'd say lusor studiosissimus.

The word lusor means "player" in general, from ludere, and I don't think we should expect a closer hit for "gamer".

The adjective studiosus comes from studium and is more about eagerness and devotion than studying despite looking like many familiar words in modern languages. I emphasized it further with the superlative.

To me the English implies video games while the Latin doesn't. It refers to playing any games, so video games are certainly included. If you want to specify the type of games involved, you need to supply details. But in most use cases you shouldn't explain yourself too much at the expense of conciseness if major misinterpretation is unlikely.

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  • Thank you. And yeah, I guess it falls in with video games more than anything. Do you think with better context it would make sense with lusor studiosissimus referring to video game player? Feb 28 at 2:08
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    @JohhanSantana I added a sentence to clarify. It makes perfect sense to use the phrase for video games. It's broader than the English phrase but certainly includes video games.
    – Joonas Ilmavirta
    Feb 28 at 2:17
  • There seems to be a neo-Latin word, Videolusis for video games, though I can't find an originating source outside of its usage on some internet forums. Maybe that could be used to construct a more specific phrase?
    – Adam
    Feb 28 at 20:42
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    @Adam You can always replace my lusor with videolusor, but it depends on context whether it will be necessary. My translation has the same denotation but a different connotation than the English when it comes to including specific game types, so no translation will be perfect. I'm not sure I buy lusis, but I'd be happy to see an answer elaborating on that or other options.
    – Joonas Ilmavirta
    Mar 1 at 2:34
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    @VictorBC I wouldn't use anything with video- in Latin unless I had the urgent need to be very specific and avoid the slightest misinterpretation. Usually just "gamer" will do, just like in English. Indeed, the best style to specify the matter in Latin would be to use an adjective. My first reaction would be lusor computatralis, which works at least if it's about computer games rather than console games. And that brings me to my recurring point: The best translation of a given phrase depends on context, not just the original phrase.
    – Joonas Ilmavirta
    Jun 14 at 17:46

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