linea

līnĕa ( līnĭa ), ae, f. [linum], a linen thread, a string, line.

I.

Lit.:

nectere lineas, restes, funes,

Varr. R. R. 1, 23, 6:

linia longinqua per os religata,

Plin. 9, 17, 26, § 59:

ligato pede longā lineā gallina custoditur,

Col. 8, 11, 15:

linea margaritarum triginta quinque,

Dig. 35, 2, 26; cf.:

lineae duae ex margaritis,

ib. 34, 2, 40; and ib. 9, 2, 27 fin.:

linea dives (of the strings of pearls which were thrown among the people at the public games),

Mart. 8, 78, 7 (cf. Suet. Ner. 11).—

B.

In partic.

1.

In a net, the threads which form the meshes:

licia difficile cernuntur: atque ut in plagis lineae offensae, praecipitant in sinum (of spiders' webs),

Plin. 11, 24, 28, § 82.—

b.

Transf., a net, Plin. 9, 43, 67, § 145:

si feras lineis et pinna clusas contineas,

Sen. Clem. 1, 12, 5.—

2.

A fishing-line:

tremulāve captum lineā trahit piscem,

Mart. 3, 58, 27; 10, 30, 18.—Hence, prov.: mittere lineam, to cast a line, to fish for, try to catch a person, Plaut. Most. 5, 1, 22.—

3.

A plumbline of masons and carpenters:

perpendiculo et lineā uti,

Cic. Q. Fr. 3, 1, 1; cf.:

ad regulam et lineam,

Vitr. 7, 3; 5, 3; Pall. 3, 9.—Hence,

b.

Ad lineam and rectā lineā, in a straight line, vertically, perpendicularly:

solida corpora ferri suo deorsum pondere ad lineam,

Cic. Fin. 1, 6, 18; Plin. 19, 8, 42, § 147;

of the layers of stone in a wall: saxa, quae rectis lineis suos ordines servant,

Caes. B. G. 7, 23:

(ignis) rectis lineis in caelestem locum subvolat,

Cic. Tusc. 1, 17, 40.—

4.

A region, tract:

linea tam rectum mundi ferit illa Leonem,

that region lies directly under the lion, Luc. 10, 306.—

5.

A bowstring, Ter. Maur. praef. v. 19.—

II.

Transf., a thread-like stroke or mark made with a pen, pencil, etc., a line:

Apelli fuit perpetua consuetudo, numquam tam occupatam diem agendi, ut non, lineam ducendo, exerceret artem, quod ab eo in proverbium venit (namely, the proverb: nulla dies sine linea),

Plin. 35, 10, 36, § 84:

lineam cinere ducere,

id. 18, 33, 76, § 327:

candida per medium folium transcurrens,

id. 27, 11, 77, § 102:

serra in praetenui linea premente harenas (of sawing marble),

id. 36, 6, 9, § 51:

nec congruebant ad horas ejus lineae (of the sundial),

id. 7, 60, 60, § 214; Pers. 3, 4.—In geometry, a line: linea a nostris dicitur, quam grammên Graeci nominant. Eam M. Varro ita definit:

Linea est, inquit, longitudo quaedam sine latitudine et altitudine,

Gell. 1, 20, 7:

locorum extremae lineae,

Quint. 1, 10, 39:

lineae, quae emittuntur ex centro,

Plin. 2, 65, 65, § 165; 2, 16, 13, § 64:

linea circumcurrens,

a circular line, circle, Quint. 1, 10, 41.—

2.

In partic.

(α).

A boundary-line which consisted of a narrow path between fields, Hyg. de Limit. p. 151; 152 Goes. —

(β).

In gen., a way, path:

dedit sequendam calle recto lineam,

Prud. Cath. 7, 48.—

b.

A barrier or line in the theatre, by which the seats were separated from each other:

quid frustra refugis? cogit nos linea jungi,

Ov. Am. 3, 2, 19; id. A. A. 1, 139:

lineas poscere,

Quint. 11, 3, 133.—

c.

A feature, lineament:

adulti venustissimis lineis,

Arn. 5, 179 al. —

B.

Trop.

1.

A line of descent or kindred, lineage (post-class.): stemmata cognationum directo limite in duas lineas separantur, quarum altera est superior, altera inferior, Dig. 38, 10, 9:

clara gentis Linea,

Stat. S. 3, 3, 43:

primo gradu superioris linea continentur pater, mater,

Paul. Sent. 4, 11, 1.—

2.

An outline, sketch, design (a fig. borrowed from painting):

quidam materias latius dicendo prosequebantur... alii, cum primas modo lineas duxissent,

Quint. 2, 6, 2; cf. id. 4, 2, 120: ea quae in Platonis oratione demiramur, non aemulari quidem, sed lineas umbrasque facere ausi sumus, Gell. 17, 20, 8.—

3.

A boundary-line, bound, limit, end, goal:

cum poëtae transilire lineas impune possint,

Varr. L. L. 9, § 5 Müll.; Cassiod. Var. 3, 50:

si quidem est peccare tamquam transire lineas,

to go beyond the mark, pass the prescribed limits, Cic. Par. 3, 1, 20:

mors ultima linea rerum est,

Hor. Ep. 1, 16, 79:

admoveri lineas sentio,

Sen. Ep. 49.—Hence, prov.: amare extremā lineā, to love at a distance, i. e. to see the beloved object only at a distance, not be able to speak to her, Ter. Eun. 4, 2, 12.