metuo

mĕtŭo, ŭi, ūtum (cf.:

nimis ante metutum,

Lucr. 5, 1140 ), 3, v. a. and n. [metus], to fear, be afraid of a person or thing; to hesitate, not to venture, not to wish (syn.: vereor, formido, timeo); with inf., with ne, to fear lest; with ui or ne non, to fear that not; also of inanimate things, with acc., to fear, revere, reverence one; as a v. n., to fear, be afraid, be in fear, be apprehensive, esp. as the effect of the idea of threatening evil (whereas timere usually denotes the effect of some external cause of terror); to dread, apprehend; with an indirect interrogation: non metuo quin, for non dubito quin, I doubt not but; to be anxious about any one; with dat. (class.).

I.

Act.: quem metuont oderunt, Enn. ap. Cic. Off. 2, 7, 23 (Trag. v. 403 Vahl.):

deos et amo et metuo,

Plaut. Poen. 1, 2, 73:

male ego metuo milvos,

id. ib. 5, 5, 13:

metuebant (senem) servi, verebantur liberi,

Cic. Sen. 11, 37:

tu, qui crimen ais te metuisse,

id. Verr. 2, 5, 30, § 78: nec pol istae metuunt Deos, Ter. Hec. 5, 2, 6:

absentem patrem,

id. Phorm. 1, 2, 68:

nec metuit quemquam,

id. Ad. 1, 2, 5.—With ab:

quid a nobis metuit?

Plaut. Capt. 2, 1, 12:

a me insidias,

Cic. Fam. 5, 6, 2:

supplicia a vobis metuere debent,

to fear from you, id. Rosc. Am. 3, 8:

a quo (Ajace) sibi non injuriā summum periculum metuebat,

Auct. Her. 2, 19, 29:

a quo domino sibi metuebat graves cruciatus,

Aug. Lib. Arbitr. 1, 4, 9; Gregor. M. Homil. 1, 14, 2; Aug. cont. Acad. 2, 8.—With ex:

si periculum ex illis metuit,

Sall. C. 52, 16.—With de:

de lanificio neminem metuo, una aetate quae sit,

i. e. no one's competition in spinning, Plaut. Merc. 3, 1, 22.—Of inanim. subjects:

quae res cotidie videntur, minus metuunt furem,

Varr. R. R. 1, 22.—

(β).

With inf.:

metuont credere omnes,

Plaut. Ps. 1, 3, 70:

ut tentare spem certaminis metuunt,

Liv. 32, 31:

nil metuunt jurare,

Cat. 64, 146:

reddere soldum,

not to wish, be averse to, Hor. S. 2, 5, 65:

praebere,

id. Ep. 1, 18, 1.—Of nonpersonal subjects:

illum aget pennā metuente solvi Fama superstes,

Hor. C. 2, 2, 7. —

(γ).

With ne:

nimis metuebam male, ne abiisses,

Plaut. Ps. 4, 1, 8:

male metuo ne... morbus aggravescat,

Ter. Hec. 3, 2, 2:

fratrem, ne intus sit (Gr. construction),

id. Eun. 3, 5, 62.—

(δ).

With ut:

ornamenta, quae locavi, metuo, ut possim recipere,

Plaut. Curc. 4, 1, 3:

metuo ut hodie possim emolirier,

id. Bacch. 4, 5, 2:

metuo ut substet hospes,

Ter. And. 5, 4, 11:

ut sis vitalis,

Hor. S. 2, 1, 61.—

(ε).

With ne non:

metuo ne non sit surda,

Plaut. Cas. 3, 3, 12; id. Pers. 4, 6, 4:

metuis ne non, quom velis, convincas esse illum tuom?

Ter. Heaut. 5, 3, 15.—

(ζ).

With quin:

non metuo meae quin uxori latae suppetiae sient,

Plaut. Am. 5, 1, 54.—

(η).

With object-clause, to await with fear, anxiety; to be in apprehension, concerned about:

metuo, patres quot fuerint,

Plaut. Truc. 4, 3, 35:

metui, quid futurum denique esset,

I dreaded, awaited with fear, Ter. Heaut. 3, 3, 8: metuo quid agam. Sy. Metuis? quasi non ea potestas sit tua, etc., id. ib. 4, 3, 42:

metuo qualem tu me esse hominem existumes,

id. Eun. 4, 6, 20.—

(θ).

Pass. with dat.:

jam maturis metuendus Juppiter uvis,

Verg. G. 2, 419. —

(ι).

Absol.:

se e contempto metuendum fecit,

Sall. H. 1, 48, 3.—

B.

(Eccl. Lat.) Of religious fear, to revere, dread, hold in reverence:

Deum,

Vulg. Lev. 25, 43:

Dominum Deum nostrum,

id. Jer. 5, 24:

sanctuarium meum,

id. Lev. 19, 30.—

II.

Neutr., to fear, be afraid, be apprehensive, etc.

(α).

With de:

neque tam de suā vitā, quam de me metuit,

fears not so much for his own life as for me, Cic. Att. 10, 4, 6.—

(β).

With ab:

metuens ab Hannibale,

afraid of Hannibal, Liv. 23, 36.—

(γ).

With pro:

metuere pro aliquo,

Petr. 123.—

(δ).

With dat., to be anxious about or for a person or thing:

metuens pueris,

Plaut. Am. 5, 1, 60:

inopi metuens formica senectae,

Verg. G. 1, 186:

tum decuit metuisse tuis,

id. A. 10, 94.—Hence, mĕtŭens, entis, P. a., fearing, afraid of any thing; anxious for any person or thing; with gen. or absol. (mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose):

contentus parvo metuensque futuri,

Hor. S. 2, 2, 110:

metuens virgae,

Juv. 7, 210.— Comp.:

quo non metuentius ullum Numinis ingenium,

Ov. F. 6, 259:

Nero metuentior in posterum,

Tac. A. 13, 25.