licentia

lĭcentĭa, ae, f. [licet], freedom, liberty, leave to do as one pleases, license.

I.

In gen.: Dae. Licet... licet... licet. Tr. Hercules istum infelicet cum sua licentia, Plaut. Rud. 4, 6, 21:

nobis nostra Academia magnam licentiam dat, ut, etc.,

Cic. Off. 3, 4, 20:

pueris non omnem ludendi licentiam damus,

id. ib. 1, 29, 103:

tantum licentiae dabat gloria,

id. de Sen. 13, 44:

absolvendi,

Tac. A. 14, 49:

lasciviendi permittere militibus,

Suet. Caes. 67.—

II.

In partic.

A.

Liberty which one assumes, boldness, presumption, license:

homo ad scribendi licentiam liber,

Cic. N. D. 1, 44, 123:

a Democrito omnino haec licentia,

id. ib. 1, 38, 107:

per intercalandi licentiam,

by arbitrary intercalation, Suet. Caes. 40.—Freq. of style:

poëtarum,

Cic. de Or. 3, 38, 153:

juvenilis quaedam dicendi impunitas et licentia,

id. Brut. 91, 316:

figurarum,

Quint. 10, 1, 28.—

2.

In rhet. as a figure of speech, = parrêsia, boldness, freedom of speech, Auct. Her. 4, 36, 48:

poëtica,

Quint. 2, 4, 3; 4, 1, 58:

declamatoria,

id. 8, 3, 76.—

B.

Unrestrained liberty, unbounded license, dissoluteness, licentiousness:

deteriores omnes sumus licentia,

Ter. Heaut. 3, 1, 74:

nimia illaec licentia evadet in aliquod magnum malum,

id. Ad. 3, 4, 63:

omnium rerum infinita atque intoleranda licentia,

Cic. Agr. 1, 5, 5:

licentia libidoque,

id. Verr. 2, 3, 33, § 77:

cupiditatum,

id. Att. 10, 4, 1; id. Off. 2, 8, 28:

habere impunitatem et licentiam sempiternam,

id. Mil. 31, 84:

quorum licentiae nisi Carneades restitisset,

id. Div. 2, 72, 150: malle licentiam suam quam aliorum libertatem, Liv. 3, 37:

Sullani temporis,

lawlessness, Suet. Gram. 11:

militum,

Nep. Eum. 8:

indomitam Refrenare (licentiam),

Hor. C. 3, 24, 29:

licentiam coërcere,

Tac. H. 1, 35:

in libertatibus quoque dandis nimiam licentiam compescuit lex Fufia Caninia,

Gai. Inst. 2, 228.—Of inanimate things: magna gladiorum est licentia, the license of the sword is great, i. e. daring murders are prevalent, Cic. Fam. 4, 9, 12:

immensa licentia ponti,

Ov. M. 1, 309.—

C.

Personified as a goddess:

templum Licentiae (for Libertatis),

Cic. Leg. 2, 17, 42; cf. Libertas.